Immortality is What We Leave Behind
by BedlamAnjelle
Summary: The lines between mythos and humans were very clear cut, and Marco liked it that way. Everyone knew that the great Suzaku had deemed humans savage and was content to have nothing to do with them ever again. Which is why the phoenix lord buying two humans- young boys, no less- at the auction came as a shock. Especially to Marco. Just what was he thinking, yoi? (Anjelle and Kitsune)
1. Fear is the Mother of Morality

**Chapter Title:_ Fear is the Mother of Morality_**

**Bedlam/Kitsune: Usually I just ramble in these. Well, let's see. This whole thing started a few days ago. I had a dream, and it was just so off the wall that I had to share it with Anjelle. She liked it, and we started shooting ideas back and forth, going "What if-then…." and around two hours later we decided we had to write this as a story. By now we have to have like over 80 pages worth of notes, there's a bunch on skype that hasn't even been put into the document yet. And we just started writing. It's been a lot of fun! Building an alternate universe is a lot of work, but when you have someone working with you it's just easier somehow. I know she's got a ton of other things to work on, and so do I…. so I don't know when we're going to get back to the next chapter….BUT I'll admit a good amount of said chapter is already outlined. And I'm probably going to get weird looks at work again when I go on lunch to read over what she's done in the document when I was away…. I think that was my second favorite part of working on this chapter. Seeing the changes that happened. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this story!**

**Anjelle: Psh, don't listen to her. I guarantee I'll have at least a scene of chapter 2 written by tomorrow. Anyways, this has been one of the funnest projects I've EVER taken on. We're only one chapter in and it's on _Divide_'s level of fun. THAT is scary. It's been so exciting, getting to collaborate on this with her. My god, her ideas! QAQ We have many plans, lovelies, many plans. Now, this _IS_ a FULL FANTASY AU (my first EVER) so I know some people might be put-off by that, but please give it a shot, 'kay? Things will pick up next chapter, I assure, but I think we have a nice pace going here. I'm kind of worried that it won't be seamless and you'll be able to tell who wrote what but since we went over it a few times... hopefully it'll be fine.**

**A few (IMPORTANT) notes~**

**-Ace and Luffy are, at first, going to have different names. The names (Atche and Luhfi) are based on their native language because they're foreign (and by foreign I mean from a place that doesn't exist) so we thought it'd be more realistic. Do not fear, though, because they'll be going back to Ace and Luffy really soon in a pretty amusing way. So just bear with it for now, yeah?**

**-There's a language barrier between the boys and the mythos. To show this, the italicized dialogue is what the POV focus (Ace in the first scene, Marco in the second ect) _cannot understand._ That way you still know what's going on but they don't~ :,D**

**-Canon familial relations aren't always the same in this story. For example, Ace and Lu are blood brothers and neither are Dragon's son. Hope that doesn't bother anyone but we have out reasons.**

**Disclaimer: Neither of us own One Piece (damn it, Oda!) but could you imagine if we did? ...Probably run it into the ground.**

* * *

Crashes of waves rolled against the ship, rocking it back and forth as it attempted to stay afloat. Sea-sprayed winds caressed their flesh, masked by the heavy rains, giving him the cold kiss of death as he held fast to the tied-down crates surrounding him, warning him, _mocking _him.

He bit his lip.

Hugging the small bundle in his arms tighter, pressing it against his chest, he promised not to panic. They would be _fine._ They always were. Even as the blackened sky brought with it a foreboding storm, even as he heard the men on deck holler prayers to the skies, begging the gods to grant them mercy, he would not submit. His fear wouldn't control him. He would, however, admit that in the deepest regions of his mind he _might _have been a little… unsettled.

The tiny child in his arms stirred, shivering against the soaked fabric wrapped around him, causing the elder's unease to grow.

"It'll be alright," he assured, voice lost to the howling gusts ensnaring the ship. "I'm here, okay?"

"C-cold," a small voice choked through clattering teeth, barely audible amidst the sea's chaos.

Narrowing his eyes, he pressed the skin of his palm to the boy's arm, gritting his teeth when he was met with unnaturally chilled flesh. His heart sank and he huddled himself around the other more fully, trying to shield him from the relentless downpour assaulting them.

Where the _hell_ were they?

A piercing laugh cut through the insanity, unnaturally calm as men screamed about a leak being sprung in the haul, causing his thoughts to cease. Gray eyes snapped up, locked onto the body of a large, round _thing_, because whatever it was, it _was not human_. Its gaze bore down on him, a rotten-yellow smile stretching across dark skin.

_"What do we have here? Zehahaha!"_

In that moment, he was scared.

* * *

The view from the carriage window did little to keep his interest, the same white clouds and pink-yellow skies retaining the same dull look they always did, leaving him to sigh and look back into the carriage. The journey wouldn't be much longer, he assured himself, but even at its end he wouldn't be granted relief.

He hated the auction.

When Princess Hancock of the naga called for the gathering he had cringed knowing that, since the tiger had represented the old man during the last one a decade ago, the phoenix was next in line. Sure enough he was requested to attend and, unable to say no, he found himself making the long journey there via carriage, dressed in formal garb he rather never wear.

It was heavy. That was natural—the finely detailed embroidery weighed it down on top of the many layers that made up the ensemble—but he hated it all the same. And people wondered why he avoided social gatherings. Wasn't it obvious?

After staring at the inside wall of the coach for an unprecedented amount of time, his head dipped down, eyes falling to the long, flowing robes that hung freely beneath his sash. Bright, flamboyant reds entered his field of vision, reminding him of his lineage—of his name.

Again, he sighed. He really wasn't in the mood for this. He hated dealing with that woman's eccentric obsession—volatile collection of human oddities. Why she searched for such things when she had such a firm dislike of those creatures was beyond him. Why she forced them to come and admire it all, even more so.

As much as he hated the traditional wear he found himself in, he had to admit that the cuffs and overdress were impressively crafted, meticulously embroidered with patterns of off-white birds and symbols his family was known for, beaded tassels hanging gently from the ends. With such beautiful work he just _knew_ he would be bothered by the auction's other attendees.

It was going to be a _long _day.

_Damn it._

Taking the fine, orange silk of his skirt between his fingers, he peered out the window once more. The sky was just as empty but, looking down, he spotted a curious figure through the morning fog. At first it appeared to be no more than a group of tiny, dark flecks but as the carriage sailed across the wind, tunneling through the clouds towards the gathering, he spotted the iconic rooftops of the Kuja palace.

His shoulders deflated, both thankful to put an end to his mind-numbing ride and dreading the upcoming event. But progress was progress and the sooner the day was over, the sooner he could return to the old man's side. That comfort alone was enough to bring forth a rise of motivation from his gut and as the carriage came to gently land on the Kuja clan's soil, immediately within the palace walls, he resigned himself to see his duties through to the best of his abilities.

His servant wasted no time in opening the door for him and he straightened his back, once more cursing his long robes and loose, flowing sleeves as he readied to try to exit the transport without falling flat on his face.

Fortunately, he somehow managed to succeed.

The small entourage accompanying him hurried out of the bodies of their respective rides, assembling around him as the palace guards came to notice their arrival. The naga were quick to approach, standing before him with the utmost respect. Half-lidded eyes studied them, waiting to be spoken to first. It was the same every time. Couldn't they at least _try_ to make the event more intriguing?

"Master Suzaku," a woman greeted, bowing humbly when his eyes came to rest on her. She waited until signalled to rise, the belly of her serpent-like tail trailing along the ground as she came nearer. "It is an honour, Sire."

He resisted the urge to scoff inappropriately at her greeting, recognising her to be the princess's younger sister, a royal in her own right. Over the centuries he'd grown tired of such pointless treatment. But, being a representative at the auction, he had to keep face. That didn't mean he enjoyed it, though.

"The princess is present, I presume?" It was best to get obligatory greetings out of the way.

The younger princess blinked before nodding, hands clasped daintily in front of her. "She is."

"Take me to her yoi," he commanded, already starting towards the palace, having been there enough times to recall its layout perfectly.

"Ah, right!" the woman shouted, rushing to catch up to their guest.

Approaching the room he _knew _she was located, he braced himself. That woman could be difficult. He allowed the naga girl to knock and enter in his stead, knowing that if he had done so himself, her sister would not have been pleased. That was no way to treat guests in the Kuja palace and Boa would assure such customs were upheld, even with her own sibling.

The door was pushed open, revealing the stark white walls and decorative golds and reds within. The throne room was always where Hancock would be found during a gathering; it was the official place set aside for when guests were invited to the Kuja lands. Having come as early as he did, the phoenix expected to see her alone, or at least ordering some poor soul to finish with preparations for the later arrivals, but instead found her bickering with a rather unpleasant-looking troll that gave off the peculiar scent of sea salt. And she was _not_ happy.

"Sister, Master Suzaku has arrived."

The naga princess turned, every line of her body still radiating displeasure at the person she had been arguing with. "Marco?" Her eyes scrolled from her sibling to the blond in fiery traditional regalia, retaining her ever-present scowl in the face of men. "I was under the impression you didn't approve of my little auction, Phoenix Lord."

"I don't, yoi." He looked down at Hancock, not impressed with the way she tilted her body to capitalize on her beauty before looking away. She was said by many to be the vision of absolute splendor, but he didn't see it. "I'm here representing Whitebeard this time."

"Ah, yes. I did invite him, didn't I? Very well, then; maybe you'll find something that catches your interest. Though I feel I owe you an apology. It _seems_ I will have fewer goods to offer than I had originally anticipated."

Now that was unusual. The snake was meticulous in her catalog, if nothing else. It was one of the big draws of her auction. People came just to see the things she'd promised to have. "Oh?"

"Yes. It would seem the troll here couldn't complete a simple task." She rounded again on the very large man that was leering at her. It was nothing personal; trolls were baser creatures, feeding off of fear and lust when they could—nasty, violent beings—and it didn't surprise him at all that the naga had sent a troll, of all things, to 'retrieve' her merchandise if humans were involved. "All you had to do was dispose of the humans and bring my merchandise, Teach! How _hard_ is that? Even a lowly half-troll like you should have been able to manage _THAT_."

Teach's leer turned into a gap-toothed grin. "Yeah, but look what I found, Princess!" He hefted a squalling bag over his shoulder, dropping it on the floor between them with little ceremony and toeing it.

"What is _that_?" Hancock asked, lip curling in disgust. Now that the bag wasn't hidden by the troll's see-me-not magic, it smelled. Horribly. Marco tried hard to keep his own face impassive as the odour hit him, knowing it had to be much worse for the snake who could literally taste it in the air.

Teach didn't seem to notice nor care as he gleefully yanked off the rope that was holding the sack closed and reached in. It took a moment for Marco to blink the tears out of his eyes; the stench was overwhelming. When he did he saw the fat troll holding out two squirming, screeching _things_ in one hand. They were filthy, covered in layers of caked on grime. He laughed, watching them dangle from the chains connected to their wrists, feet kicking in the air in futile rage as they hissed and spat like wildcats. The troll dropped them when they started biting him, though it was obvious that it didn't hurt him.

"What do you think?" The troll asked, yanking the chains and forcing his captives to  
squeal in pain.

"_Humans?_ You lost half my shipment for a pair of... of... _human_ nestlings?" Hancock literally hissed.

Marco narrowed his eyes, trying to remain indifferent even as he watched the little creatures claw at their bindings, not bothering to notice the others in the room, desperate for  
freedom. "Why, yoi?"

Teach looked pleased with the question, even as he continued toying with them. "They had them all tied up on deck with those stupid squiggly pieces of paper everywhere, like they were something special. So I took them." The troll lifted his arm, the two shuddering, whimpering, tiny humans dangling in front of his face as his licked his rotten, yellowed teeth. "If you don't want 'um though, Princess, mind if I eat them?"

The snake furrowed her brow, scoffing at his question. She was livid—absolutely _appalled_. "_Eat them_?" she repeated in a snarl. "You should be lucky if I let you live after this—this _outrage_, you louse!"

With that she turned from him in a rage, eyes falling on her honoured guest as she tried to compose herself. Marco was sure she was aware of the amused glint in his eyes, the slight intrigue in the almost undetectable upward curve of his mouth as he witnessed her lost temper in the most embarrassing of ways. That was probably why she clenched her fist and took a deep breath to calm herself. Were the phoenix not present, she would have continued to rag on the servant, he was certain.

"Very well," she started in a quiet voice, "should no one desire to purchase those… _things_, you may keep them. But do not think you will go unpunished for your mistake."

The troll's grin widened almost dangerously and he pulled once more on the chains, causing the humans to fall forward onto the tiled floor. "I wouldn't dream of it, zehahaha!"

* * *

The boy gasped out, arms flailing around in a panic as he searched for the surface of the water, his body weighed down by the manacles around his wrists. The stream wasn't much deeper than his head, fortunately, and it was only seconds before he burst into the open air, greedily inhaling all the oxygen his tiny lungs could contain.

As soon as he was calm his eyes widened, horror-stricken as he realized his little brother hadn't surfaced.

"Luhfi!"

Quickly he dove back under, scouring the stream for any sign of his sibling and managing to catch his eyes on a familiar bright-red shirt, untainted by the crystal clear water they found themselves in. Despite feeling twice as heavy because of the bindings, he swam over to retrieve the child, making a bee-line for the shore as soon as he held the boy tight within his grasp.

They flopped down on the grassy plains at the edge of the water, breathless as their backs hit the earth. He looked over at the younger, watching as he choked out wet coughs, huddling nearer to his elder sibling in a desperate search for comfort.

Muffled sniffling met his ears. Poor kid couldn't swim. If he hadn't—

…He didn't want to think about that.

A familiar laugh met his ears, putrid in its sound, and he shot up to glare his hardest at its source. He wasn't sure what it was or why it brought them… wherever they were, but he knew that he hated it. At the same time, though, his body was exhausted. They'd been resisting for _hours _and hadn't even set the thing back in its plans for them, whatever those were. And honestly, it scared him. That creature was strong, far stronger than they could match, and they were at its mercy.

_Mercy._ He scoffed at the thought. _I doubt it knows what that is._

_"Get yourselves clean. Wouldn't want that stench in the auction house, zehahaha!"_

There it went again, speaking nonsense words that he had no way of understanding. But he understood when it walked over and snarled, pushing his younger brother further behind him despite the trembling of his limbs. If it attacked, could he really protect him?

Instead of trying to kill—or _eat_—them, it shoved a strange… thing (he needed to think of a more descriptive word) between their chains, pinning them down like leashed dogs. Giving them one last, rotten smile, it dropped a strange-smelling bar of—was that soap?—on the ground beside them, promptly taking its leave.

When it left his line of view, the boy tugged on the shackles, noting immediately that escape was impossible in his current state. He was hungry, tired and weak from struggling. There wasn't much else he could do.

Soft whimpers pulled him from his thoughts and his eyes settled on the kid beside him, lip quivering as he saw his sibling's tears. But he had to stay strong—for Luhfi. Since it wasn't hard to figure out what that thing wanted them to do, he grabbed the weird soap bar and dumped it into the water, gently taking the younger boy's hand in his own to begin cleaning him, hoping that it would take their minds off of the situation.

"A-Atche…"

His heart broke at the terrified trembling in his baby brother's voice but he didn't let it show. "What is it, Lu?"

"I'm sc-scared," he hiccupped, rubbing the tears from his eyes.

"I know."

"And I'm hungry…"

"Yeah, me too."

"I-is the monster going to come back?"

He bit his lip, knowing that his brother wouldn't like the answer. "It'll be okay, I promise. Let's get you cleaned up, alright?"

As the boy sniffled and shared a minute nod, he really hoped those words would hold true.

_Monster, huh?_ That was the perfect name for him.

* * *

He'd forgotten just how much he _hated_ these things. Lifetimes ago, someone had described the slowly changing groups as a dance. If that were the case, Marco had two left feet, because he had no interest what-so-ever in the new kits born in the cat sidhe tribe Bellemere spoke of. Nor did he particularly care to reminisce about the 'good-old-days' like Morgan, an onyx golem, insisted upon while they both examined a particularly exquisite set of jade bangles. Golems were very hard to dissuade, and it was for that reason alone that he was thankful for his entourage. All Marco had been required to do is make vague, non-committal noises and his loyal hangers-on did all the work.

Finally extracting himself away from the group he stifled a sigh. It wouldn't do to rush around and try to lose them, even if he _could,_ dressed as he currently was. With the slow pace of the proceedings, though, the heavy silks were much too warm for his tastes and Marco shifted his course accordingly. It was moments before he'd tracked down what he'd been looking for—a naga circulating the gallery laden with a tray of refreshments held high above her head.

"My Lord." She bobbed her head, forked tongue flicking out in an obvious case of nerves. Marco pretended not to notice as he gracefully took the goblet she selected for him. Apparently emboldened by that she settled her tray on her coils, reaching into a decorative bag around her waist and offering him an ornate fan. "If it pleases you?"

"It does." He offered her a small smile, taking the fan. "Thanks, yoi."

"Master Suzaku, you are much too kind to those who are of lesser stature than your divine self!" Turning slightly he saw that his entourage had indeed tracked him down, scaring off the servant in the process.

"So we're calling ourselves 'divine' now, bird?" someone guffawed behind him, earning scandalized gasps. Marco forced himself to keep his expression of schooled boredom, though he felt like grinning a bit himself as he turned to face the speaker.

"Well, I prefer 'stunning', you old fire-lizard." He flicked the fan he was holding sideways, a silent signal to his bunch of social leeches to make themselves scarce if they couldn't keep their words to themselves.

"Bwahahahaha! Nice comeback, Marco!" the dragon roared in laughter. "How've you been?"

Marco turned slightly, walking towards the next item he was interested in. "Well, Garp. Yourself? I had not expected to see you here, yoi."

"Fine, fine!" The dragon reached out to slap his arm, remembering his expensive silks at the last possible second. Done by any other mythos the move would have seemed either rude or an awkward save, but Garp was a dragon. Some said dragons were too laid-back for their own good, and that elder was living proof. "Dragon'll be sorry he missed you! Only reason I'm here at all is 'cause that whelp of mine's busy right now. And let me tell you, Boa was _pissed_!"

He felt his lips twitch, imagining that. "I'll bet she was, yoi."

"Can't imagine why, though." Garp's toothy grin belied that statement. "Well. I'll let you get back to _this_." He flicked a clawed finger at the intricately carved combs on display. "I think I saw a real unicorn bridle over there somewhere. Bet I could really piss off some people if I bid on it."

"You are a bad man, Garp."

"Only sometimes," the dragon laughed, striding away without a care for the slow, intricate dance going on around him.

The combs were beautiful. Definitely human in origin, but there was a faint whiff of something else along Marco's senses as he studied the gold and ivory hair decorations. There was a simple card stating that these combs had been acquired in human lands by a pride of gryphons and later presented to the naga princess as a gift. Marco snorted, suspecting that the gryphon in question had more than likely been enamored with Hancock and all too willing to bring her all the pretty human baubles he could tempt her with before she'd inevitably lost interest. She was a fickle viper, and it amazed him that even after a few hundred years men still played her petty, violent little game.

The opening suggestion had been scratched out, the bidder apparently someone named Nami who was willing to pay five beli more. Marco picked up the pen next to the card and paused for a moment. He didn't particularly need the combs himself, obviously. And whoever Nami was, she may very well really like them. On the other hand, he was sure Izo would like them as well. Before he could change his mind he scratched out Nami's name and bid and wrote his own—double what hers was—and underlined the number, letting anyone who saw the card know that was his final bid. Before long, some of the naga would go around and report to people if they'd been outbid on items. It helped cut down on the crush of people at the exhibits and that way some of the more excitable guests didn't even need to be bothered with remembering what they'd bid on in the first place. So if Nami really wanted them she could always raise the bid. If she conceded and there hadn't been another bid after two hours, Marco would automatically win the item. It would stay on display until the very end of the auction where he could choose to have his winnings delivered or bring them home himself.

He let the ebb and flow of the crowd take him down the line of curios. None of it really caught his eye as he listened with half an ear to the false praise heaped upon him by people he rarely saw. At one point he found himself in a small bidding war with the mer-shark Jinbe, though he didn't see his friend at all. Turning his attention away from the jar of honeyed milinal apples, he found a naga at his sleeve, the same one he'd been at 'war' with Jinbe through.

"Jinbe coincides. He'd also like to know when you're going to pop the cask open, since he claims you owe him a drink."

Marco actually smiled. "Tell him that's up to the old man, yoi. The alcohol is for him. But I'll be sure to invite him."

"Very good, Sire." The naga marked the card in her hand. "I'm going to cheat a bit and mark you as the winner. No one else has bid except you two." She winked.

"Thanks."

"My pleasssure. This has been the most fun I've had all day."

The phoenix was still in a good mood when he went to put his name down on the apples, until he saw who the last bidder had been: Doflamingo. Suddenly he didn't want the apples anymore. Just the thought of thunderbirds in general left a bad taste in his mouth, and _that_ thunderbird made his pinions prickle. He took a deep breath, reminding himself that he was not ruled by instinct. He was a mythos, not some human to go off half-cocked. It helped, but admittedly not much. Thunderbirds by nature were forces of destructive change and everything that went with it. Reluctantly, he turned away.

So far the auction was as he'd expected. He'd easily won the alcohol Whitebeard wanted, and a decent set of combs he thought Izo might like. But there was nothing that caught his interest. Raucous laughter had him wandering towards the front of the gallery towards the entrance. It seemed Hancock's plan to sell the human curs had garnered a crowd at least. He joined the semi-circle of mixed mythos that jeered at the now cleaner specimens. They were thoroughly trapped, a lightning rod jammed into the ground between the links in the chains from their wrists. Both seemed exhausted as they huddled next to each other. The only shade provided to them was that of their spectators. If they hadn't been human, he might have felt pity for them.

"What about you, Mihawk? You gonna take them?"

"...No." Sharp gold eyes stared down at the crouched figures. "Too young. If I were to purchase human entertainment, it would need to be old enough to at least put up a good fight for the fledglings." He quickly dismissed the idea and looked over to the naga in charge of the lot. "Tell your princess I'd be _most_ interested if she comes across any decent human fighters. I would pay good money for a combat slave."

The serpent swallowed under the gaze before nodding mutely.

Marco doubted anyone else there saw the humor in the raptor's look when their eyes met briefly, sharing in the private joke. Phoenix birds were not normally considered threatening, usually being viewed as too ornate _now_ by those who'd never been on the wrong side of a fight with one, but Marco was old enough to remember a time when snakes, rabbits, and rats used to look at him like that—like he was a predator to avoid being seen by at all costs.

The air chilled, alerting him to a most unwelcome presence. "What have we here?" Doflamingo bent down, folding himself nearly in half to look at the two humans that stared up at him with wide eyes. Marco could see the corners of the thunderbird's eyes crinkle under his traditional mask as he grinned. "Fufufufufu! Humans! How _adorable_! And so small and helpless, too."

"They are human young," the naga dutifully told the giant bird of destruction. Marco really wished that she hadn't, but unfortunately snakes didn't have the fear of death-bringers they should.

"Are they now?" He stepped over a few people to get closer to the humans, head cocked to the side like the carrion eater he was. "How much?"

Marco tried, he really did try to keep his mouth shut. He told himself that it was a better fate than being eaten by a troll, at least. Except he knew it was a lie. He'd seen firsthand what _this_ Lord of the Thunderbirds did to amuse himself. "Stop it. You don't want them, yoi."

"I think I do," Doflamingo snapped back, a hand shooting out to latch around the smaller human's leg. "I've been bored. I could use some new pets. Do you think they're trainable?"

Finally the naga seemed to realize something was wrong, though it could have been the threat to her mistress's merchandise. Her tail began to twitch nervously. "I-I couldn't say, sir. But, they _are_ young."

The dark bird smiled at that, feathers settling as he lifted the human by its leg and watched the other's attempts to get it down. Compared to hours ago their struggles were sluggish, and Marco found himself idly wondering just how much longer they could go on before passing out. Humans were weak, after all. The laughter of his fellow mythos, while not surprising, wasn't something he could bring himself to join in on. Human or not, tormenting the weak had never been something to laugh at. He didn't try to stop it, since if it really was a problem the naga would say something. That was what she was there for; to provide information and protect the merchandise if needed.

A stronger kick from the upside-down human actually managed to connect with Doflamingo's mask, knocking it askew.

"BRAT!" the mythos cawed, grip tightening around the human's leg in obvious anger. It was over; he was going to kill it.

"Maybe I should buy them, after all," Mihawk spoke up, stopping the other bird. "After all, the little one seems to have gotten _you_ ruffled."

Doflamingo dropped the human, voice tight. "No, you just need to be firm with a pet, hawk. It's how you train them."

"And if you kill them in the process?" Marco realized he was the one who spoke when everyone looked at him.

He didn't like the way Doflamingo tapped the side of his mask in contemplation. "Then I guess I _really_ break them, hmmm?" He refused to say anything to that. Refused to rise to the bait, to think about that time… He was better than that damn death-bringer, and he had nothing to prove. He was just going to turn and walk away, because it was _not his problem_. "So, how much for the both of them again?"

_Conceited carrion eater._

He spun, pinning the naga with his stare. He made sure she saw just how annoyed he was with her for her _uselessness_ in the whole situation. It had the desired effect; she froze, completely focused on Marco. "I'll pay whatever you're asking plus half."

* * *

The only thing soothing Atche's shot nerves was the soft, barely noticeable movement of his little brother's chest as he breathed, head resting comfortably on the elder's lap. It was getting harder to stay awake with each passing moment, a reminder of how long it had been since they were allowed _rest._ But they _couldn't_ rest—not with those _monsters_ keeping them there. What if they hurt Lu? He couldn't sleep and leave his poor, helpless little brother undefended.

Earlier they'd thrown them in a room filled with a large assortment of what appeared to be random things gathered together from different parts of the world. They were pinned by their chains, just like when they were brought to that big place with all the monsters, all staring at them and laughing and _touching his little brother_—like that blond one with the stupid mask. When that thing first walked up they were scared, having seen the talons on its fingertips and the clearly inhuman features it sported. When the ugly, round monster from earlier looked at them it would lick its lips—did they eat people? They weren't going to eat _Lu_ were they?—but the man-like thing just grinned and everything about it _screamed _danger. It and two others who Atche hadn't bothered to look at bickered about something, examining them like pieces of meat.

Was that what they were to those monsters? Food? Was that all their lives amounted to?

Eventually one voice quieted the others. He and his brother were promptly sent away after that, but he never got a chance to see who ended the torment. He remembered the voice, though—smooth and calm amongst a flurry of irritating noise and mocking jibes. It was that impassioned tone that got the staring to stop. For that, he was grateful.

The creatures treated them like cargo to be stored in a spare room. The snake-people who kept toting them around everywhere would glower at them like they were dirt, muttering insults before leaving. He couldn't understand what they were saying but it was obvious by the intonation that it wasn't exactly nice.

After hours of _nothing_, he was starting to lose his battle with sleep. Luhfi had made him into a makeshift bed long ago and was snoring away, leaving him with no one to talk to and nothing to do. It was _mind_-numbing.

Finally the set of large doors at the front of the room creaked open. Dozens of monsters filed in, chattering away in that strange language of theirs as they dispersed, grabbing knick-knacks and furniture and stuff that he really couldn't identify from where he was situated. A few stepped over to the brothers to have a look and he snarled at them, almost like a growl, warning them off. They didn't seem put-off by the action, smirking and laughing before moving towards the back.

The crowd grew before dispersing and eventually no one was left but the snake-man (guard?) at the door, watching for anyone else. For a long while no one came and he thought that, after surviving that nightmare, he could grant himself a moment of rest. He closed his eyes, just for a second…

A rhythmic tapping brought him from his dream-like state. Atche forced his heavy lids to open, blearily peering towards the door as the patter of shoes against the floor neared. There was another one?

It seemed like forever before the creature rounded the corner and his eyes widened. Immediately he began nudging his brother, ignoring his protests of 'five more minutes' as he gawked.

The figure was clad in the most brilliant of clothes, a mesh of vibrant reds and yellows and oranges with embroidery unrivalled by any he had seen before. The layers of long, loose cloth seemed to glide along the ground to create the illusion of floating, betrayed only by the sound of his footsteps.

With a few groggy groans Luhfi sat up, yawning and wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"I'm still tired," he complained, looking like he was about to speak once more but the words caught in his throat as his eyes settled on the approaching man. Suddenly whatever he wanted to say seemed meaningless and he stared, just like his elder brother, with a slack jaw.

The elegant traditional wear may have been what caught Atche's attention first, but the real shock and surprise came when he looked up at the wearer's face, met with foreign blond hair and blue eyes. But he was _human._ Or, he at least _looked _human. And as that blond foreign man stopped in front of them, dull eyes boring into his own, he thought maybe they had been saved.

After a particularly awkward stare-down, the blond looked over his shoulder and said something in that _damned_ nonsensical language to the snake-person… thing. He wished he could understand. He wished he knew what was going on. But that man didn't look like a monster so maybe he wouldn't eat them or hurt them. Maybe he was safe.

Betraying the heavy layers of fine silks draped across his body, the blond crouched down, indifferent eyes studying the brothers with calculating coldness. They pulled their mouths taut, wondering why he was looking at them like that before he grabbed Atche by the arm and not-so-gently pulled him closer, ignoring it when the boy yelped and tugged back. He wasn't deterred, though, and moved his free hand to hold the human's chin in place, turning it to study different angles with a careful look in his eyes.

Atche glowered at him, wondering what the hell he was trying to do. But just as quickly as he was grabbed, he was released. The blond stood tall once more, looking down at them like they were inferior.

He was just like the rest.

One of the snake people walked up to the three, rubbing its hands together anxiously. _"Are they to your liking, sir?"_

Whatever he asked, the blond seemed to contemplate, his eyes moving from Atche to Luhfi and back again. _"They'll do, yoi."_

Why couldn't he _understand_? It was so aggravating! For all he knew, they were discussing the best ways to roast them!

_"Bring me the keys,"_ he continued. _"I'll need them later."_

_"Yes, Master Suzaku."_ With those few incoherent sounds and a bow, the snake-creature exited to the hall, leaving the boys with the blond stranger to whatever fate he wished.

His stare was unsettling. It was relentless, not indulging in the brief glances away that a human would, not allowing them any relief. But then he looked down curiously. Atche followed his eyes, gasping when he saw his little brother bunching the fine silk robes in his fist, looking at the bright colours and intricate patterns. He sputtered, grabbing at his brother to tug him away.

"What are you _doing_?" he questioned in a shout. "Don't piss it off!"

"But it's so pretty, Atche! Look!"

"Idiot!" he chastised. The last thing he needed was for the most human-like creature they'd seen in days to get upset with them. He didn't want to know how that would end.

An amused snort brought both boys' faces to rise, looking into the mostly indifferent face of the man. Despite the sound he made, he didn't smile.

_"Noisy little things, aren't you?"_

When the man did nothing but meet their stares, Luhfi had apparently declared him safe, breaking out into the widest of grins as he continued to clutch tightly to the floor-length orange skirt. "You're a really pretty lady!"

Atche's heart just about jumped out of his chest as he waited for the man's reaction, suddenly happy that he didn't seem to understand their language just as they didn't his. But despite Luhfi's friendly smile, despite the happy tone of his voice, the stranger didn't react. He didn't seem to care.

When met with no disapproving glance, no warning signs that he had done something wrong, the younger boy took another step closer and grabbed the cloth with both hands. He tried to pull himself flush with the blond but his shackled limbs reached the end of their chain.

"O-oi, Lu, what are you…"

His little brother turned to him, grinning through his exhaustion. "I think she's nice!"

He rolled his eyes. "It's a boy, Lu."

"Eh?" The child blinked. "But she's wearing a dress!"

"Well…" While it _did_ look like women's clothes—somewhat similar to expensive robes he'd seen sold in town once from a far-off country—the man's features were clearly, well, _masculine._

Satisfied when his sibling had no retort, Luhfi returned his attention to the stranger. The richly-clothed man was starting to look awkward—uncomfortable—as the human clung to him. Atche stopped his inward panic to stare at him curiously. Did he… did he not know what to do? Was he not used to being touched by kids? Or was it because they weren't monsters?

"Are you gonna help us, lady?"

The blond's brows furrowed as he scowled down at the boys, eyes turning hard. Suddenly his earlier fears returned. He wanted to pull his sibling away, wrap him in the protective hold of his arms, but never had a chance.

Hurriedly the servant returned, the jingling of keys floating along the air. He promptly handed the human-like creature the ring, bowing yet again with the utmost respect.

_"Is that all, Master Suzaku?"_

Atche's eyes widened. _Su… za… ku…_ He'd heard that strange, foreign name before. But where? _When?_ It sounded important…

_"I'll be taking them now, yoi."_

_"Right, Sire."_

_Damn it all,_ why couldn't he understand?

As the snake bent down and removed the large spikes pinning the links of their chains to the floor his jaw went slack. That was their chance! Without missing a beat he scooped up his brother and bolted towards the door, falling flat on his face almost instantaneously. He rubbed his throbbing forehead, cursing as he looked back to see a certain man's foot weighing down on the end of his manacle with that same indifferent expression he wore earlier.

"Oi!" he growled out, gritting his teeth as he sat up, "leave us alone! What do you even _want _from us?"

The blond raised an eyebrow, probably because he hadn't comprehended a word the child spat at him, but quickly recovered and took the bindings into his hand, tousling them slightly as though to emphasis the control he held.

_Cocky bastard._ But as much as Atche might have wished he could make him regret that action, he knew he couldn't—not as he was. What was he to do, then? Just let it do what it wished—whisk them away to who-knows-where for god-knows-why? He hated to admit it, but he was running out of options.

The being glanced at the servant one last time, grip on their chains tightening. _"You may leave yoi. Tell your princess that I am honoured to have attended."_

_"Right, sir. Thank you, sir."_ The snake dipped into a low bow, its body folding as far forward as it could without tipping over, before it left in a calm, respectful manner, never turning its back on the blue-eyed man.

The large door at the front slammed shut and the effect on the blond was instantaneous as he slouched slightly, taking a less dignified poster as he released an airy breath. Something seemed to change in him as he mumbled a few words, too quiet to catch even if Atche _had_ known the language.

For a moment he seemed to have forgotten about the two guarded children held close to him by heavy shackles but eventually that realization returned and his eyes met theirs yet again. But, just like moments ago, he sighed.

_"Why am I doing this?"_ The human didn't know the words but could tell from the raised intonation at the end that it was a question, though he didn't feel it was directed at them. And he _looked_ at them. That look was _piercing_. _"You two are going to cause me a lot of trouble yoi; I can feel it."_

The being took a step.

Air hitched in his throat as he jumped to his feet, arms splayed to shield his baby brother. "Stay back!" he commanded, momentarily forgetting that the blond didn't seem to know what he was saying. "Don't you _dare_ touch him!"

A flicker of amusement shone through those blue irises, gone just as quickly. The man didn't heed his words, moving forward once more.

Atche stepped back, forcing Luhfi to do the same.

_"Feisty little human, aren't you?"_ He stopped only when he was toe-to-toe with the elder boy. Then the bastard raised its hand, mockingly dangling the key ring in front of their faces. And Atche had to still, to go quiet, because he knew what that meant: he couldn't fight back. _"Better, yoi. If you don't wish to be troll fodder or a carrion lover's plaything, I suggest you come with me."_

Swallowing the urge to spew more tough words he couldn't back up, the boy pushed his brother further behind him and pulled his mouth taut. "In case you haven't noticed, I don't know what the hell you're saying."

A silence passed and the being seemed to consider the broken communication they practiced, though the human was certain its grasp of his words was just as poor as the reverse. Moments later it held out its hand, waiting.

Should he take it?

Luhfi, of course, didn't allow for a moment of thought as he stepped away from his human shield to latch onto the outstretched appendage, giddy laughter passing his lips even through the exhaustion and the hunger and the fear. The elder saw how the creature cringed at the touch, a flash of repulsion coming and going as the boy dangled from its wrist. It was disgusted by them, perhaps to a stronger extent than some of the monsters they'd encountered—the ones who very well may have wanted to _devour them_.

"I told you she was nice!" Luhfi cheered, clinging to the stranger worryingly close.

Atche remained fixed to the tiled floor, unwilling to move even as his brother was hoisted into the air and _sniffed_ by the thing, investigating him like some sort of wild animal. The boy wasn't deterred at all by this, laughing in his excitement over the possibility of being rescued, reaching out his hands to explore the skin of its face even when it showed its displeasure. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Maybe it—whatever _'it'_ was—didn't mean them harm. In any case, it was probably better than staying with that ugly, round monster and getting eaten, right?

As the generously-robed blond's patience wore down, the human stepped forward.

_"Wise choice, pet."_

* * *

**Mythos mentioned in this chapter:**

**Phoenix: Mythical bird of rebirth. There're different types depending on what mythology you look at, Greeks have the classic Phoenix, but there's also the Persian Anka, the Russian firebird, and the Chinese Fenghuang to name a few. In this story, they're all the same clan. Marco's a phoenix.**

**Cait Sidhe: Fairy cat in Celtic and Scottish mythology. Though some stories say it's a witch that can turn into a cat a set number of times. In this story they're related to other cat mythos tribes. Bellamire is a Cait Sith. Nami is not, she's adopted.**

**Troll: From Noris and Scandinavian mythology. In this story Teach is a ½ troll. Classic trolls in mythology don't feed off of lust, but there are tales of them terrorizing people. And yes, they will eat people.**

**Naga: From Hinduism/Buddhism. Lots of stories on these and descriptions too, from full snakes to being described as beings with just the lower body of a snake, sometimes as snakes with a human head. Handcock and her clan are all Naga, and most retain more serpent-like looks. Boa can look more 'human' than others.**

**Golem: From Jewish folklore. Being created from inanimate matter. In this story, Golems are made out of different types of minerals. Morgan is a golem.**

**Thunderbird: Native American legends. Classically a bringer of storms. When it flies it blacks out the sun, it's wing claps create thunder, and it drops lightning from it's beak. Thunderbirds are about change, being storms. Some oral stories speak of thunderbirds snatching children. They're known to be wrathful in legends when they feel they've been 'wronged'. Doflamingo is a Thunderbird.**

**Mer-Shark: A sub tribe of the merfolk, shark based. Shouldn't have to tell you what a mermaid/merman is, right? Lots of cultures have them. For this story there are some that can go on land, and some that can't. None ever looks very human. In this story they're fond of drinking, or at least Jinbe is.**

**Dragon: Another creature that shows up in mythologies across the globe with only slightly different forms, or the same basic form and different names. They're very direct and protective of those weaker than themselves in this story. The dragon clan is one of the few clans that has no problem with humans, even if humans don't feel the same way. Garp is a Dragon, and so is his son, Dragon. (We have an amusing side-story to later explain the lack of creativity for Dragon's name, rest assured.)**

**Hawk: I know I know, you're all thinking "But a hawk is a hawk!" And you're right... but you're wrong, too. See, hawks show up all over the place in mythology. They've been messengers of the gods, gods themselves, omen bringers. Well, you get the idea, right? So, Hawks are one of those mythos races that have the unique position of sharing their clan name with regular animals. Don't look down on them for it though. Hawks are prideful and everyone knows they have no sense of humor (lies). Mihawk is a Hawk.**

**(Do you see why I love her? Bedlam wrote all that out for you guys~ And there's obviously more to come. So please leave us a review and tell us what you think, yeah? This chapter was a lot of work. Worth it, of course, but I - Anjelle, not so much Bedlam - have been worrying over whether it's too weird for you guys. Care to give me some reassurance? :,D)**

***Chapter title quote by Friedrich Nietzche**

**Adieu~**


	2. Even to Live is an Act of Courage

**Bedlame: Bedlam here. First, I just want to thank all of you who've taken the time to read chapter one! It means a lot to us! Really. Secondly (and I do not say this lightly) FUCK! This chapter is a monster. Like, Over 14,000 words without The handly little who-is-what, author notes or review replies. Please don't expect this on a regular update basis. We honestly could not spit this chapter. Lots happens. I can't say anything else without *Spoilers*... Anjelle has been scolding me on staying up too late working on this as well as other stuff, so hopefully you'll see an update or two from me in the next week under my own account. I've been working on them, just been busy. Chapter three? Uh, yeah. It's started, but I think we need a break after this bad boy.**

**Anjelle: ...A break? I was actually going to start on my first scene for chapter 3 after a shower buuut if you say so~ So guys. Guys. Guys. GUYS. This chapter. My god. I know a few of you saw me ranting on tumblr about the length but HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?! We were aiming for like 8,000 words ;_; So be sure to make sure you get comfortable before you start reading because you ain't gonna be getting up for a while! And thanks SO much to the reviews for renewing my confidence QAQ I'm glad some people like these kinds of stories! Also: IT'S HER FAULT I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT I SWEAR SHE DID IT NOT ME *cough* Not... all me. Ahem. So, enjoy your chapter! I'll go hide.**

* * *

Humans, Marco decided, were devilish little creatures.

The hatchlings he had purchased at the auction feigned obedience when being led down the halls of the naga palace, being sure to stick close to him just as he'd wanted. As much as he detested the way they clung to him, years of displeasure weighing down on his nerves, he'd allowed the smaller one to rest in his arms. They may have been beings thought inferior to the mythos, but he ignored that if only because the youngling felt so unsettlingly light. Admittedly, the phoenix lord hadn't much knowledge of humans. He preferred not to deal with them at all, in fact. He may have not known much about them but even still it was painfully obvious that something was wrong. He couldn't say what it was but their pale complexion and drooping, tired eyes had him putting his prejudices aside and actually _sympathizing_ with them. That was something he never thought he could do. So, carrying the younger in one arm and allowing the elder to hold onto the other, he made it to the carriage just inside the palace walls.

That was when things went to hell.

At first the boys—even _he_ could tell a human's sex—sat quietly, patiently in the coach. The tiny one crawled into the other's lap and small arms wrapped around his waist to keep him still. Gray eyes stared at him with caution and uncertainty but both boys remained stationary. Satisfied with the level of obedience they showed, Marco leaned forward, ignoring the flinch he received from the taller one as he slipped the keys into their shackled wrists, effectively freeing them as two pairs of large, shocked eyes gawked unabashedly his way. He grabbed the cuffs, setting them on the floor.

"Behave," he began, "and you won't need to wear these yoi." He knew they wouldn't understand. They were just humans, holding not even basic comprehension of the language of the mythos. But he felt he had to say it anyways—if only for himself.

The problems started when the carriage lifted, taking off into the skies as the long ride home began. The infernal _noise_ they made was enough to drive a person mad as they leapt from their seats and flung themselves at the window, their volume increasing as they looked outside.

_"What the—we're—HOW?!"_

_"Atche look, we're flying!"_

_"I can see that, Lu!"_ While he didn't know the words they used—if they were words at all—he could tell by the sound of it that they were scared. One was, at least—the elder of the two. His tone was scolding through the unease as he held fast to the younger's shirt, keeping him from falling out the window as he leaned over the sill. The other seemed more excited than anything, having taken calmly to everything they'd witnessed thus far which, in Marco's opinion, wasn't anything special. _Humans, always so quick to go on alert. _He supposed the boy was able take such a relaxed approach only because of the one looking out for him. He was nothing more than a nestling by the look of it—they _were_ human young, as the naga servant had told him, but just how young?—so the elder, likely one of his kin, had to care for him. He supposed that even humans, one of the less evolved species, indulged in familial bonding.

But that fact didn't help with the _infernal noise _they spewed.

"Oi," he started, his voice calm and even through his inward annoyance. No matter what he felt, he was a dignified phoenix lord and he would be _damned_ if he was going to let a pair of mortals ruin that. Both suddenly jolted at the sound, craning their necks around to look at him with hesitance and uncertainty. "Quiet yourselves. It wouldn't do good to get on my nerves when I just spared you the misfortune of becoming lunch yoi."

They looked between each other.

_"…What did she say, Atche?"_

_"I don't—I told you it's a BOY."_

_"But her dress!"_

_"Like I said, it's not—"_

"Oi," he called again, just as firm and calm as ever. Again they stopped, allowing him their attention, but that did little good when they couldn't understand his words. That knowledge was frustrating; should he have had the patience and know-how, he would have taught them how to speak. Perhaps one of the servants could take on such a task. In any case, he pressed his pointer against his lips, recalling body language he'd witnessed humans use in the past, happy to see a flash of recognition on their faces.

It went quiet, the children pursing their lips to keep from speaking, and the ride continued with some semblance of peace.

But it didn't end there. Oh no, it _wouldn't_ end there.

After a long, seemingly endless flight, the carriage landed. The humans grabbed onto whatever they could find as it descended towards the grounds of the southern compound, yelps of surprise and fear escaping their throats. When back on solid ground they didn't wait for Marco's permission, not adhering to their status as property as they bolted through the carriage door and collapsed breathlessly on the ground.

The phoenix followed close behind, far less panicked and never breaking his calm composure. He could hear members of his entourage whisper insults at his pets, about how untrained they were—barbaric little creatures. But, to be honest, their actions didn't surprise him; it wasn't like humans had wings, right? Mortals had nothing to explore the skies with, no vehicles and no appendages that supported flight. In a way he could sympathise, vaguely recalling a time long ago when he learned how to fly.

It was the _noise_ that bothered him.

_"Oi, Lu,"_ called the taller one as he sat back on his haunches, his right arm pressed reassuringly on the nestling's back, _"you okay?"_

_"Mm,"_ the boy sounded with a nod before raising his head with a grin. "_That was fun! Can we do it again?"_

_"No, you idiot!"_

_"Awe, but it was so cool!"_

Before the elder had a chance to retort, the blond approached them. Immediately both sets of eyes were on him, a flash of fear and panic crossing their features before settling once more. Even for humans they seemed on-edge; every movement he made brought forth a rise of fear in the pair. The little one, who seemed the more trusting of the two, would instinctively reach for his brother every time something surprised him before returning to his more open, curious self.

He recognised those movements.

His concerns were quickly forgotten when the boys recovered, hopping energetically to their feet as they finally turned their attention to their surroundings, apparently deeming their new owner 'safe' amongst the unfamiliarity of the new world they'd been wrapped up in. Marco wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not but, for the sake their cooperation, he was pleased enough.

Then things took a turn.

The phoenix lord could tell something was wrong when their backs straightened, stiffening unnaturally as they looked ahead. Their heads spun furiously, taking in all of the mythos, mostly servants, littering the palace grounds before the elder pulled the nestling into his arms, taking a protective stance as he tried to mask the trembling of his arms behind a brave front. But that was all it was and Marco could see it—a mask, thinly veiling the fear behind.

Taking a step, he reached for the taller one's shoulder. As the tips of his fingers lightly brushed the fabric of the human's shirt the boy jumped, spinning around to look at him with such _betrayal_ that he momentarily froze. That pause was all the child needed to lift the younger into his arms and dash away with all of his speed, leaving the blond to stare absently at where they'd been.

At first he remained still, impassive on the outside yet internally confused. But as the eyes around him turned his way, he began to understand; for every servant present there was a new creature they were unfamiliar with. Torn from the world they knew, how could they just blindly accept everything they had seen? Humans by nature were fearful things. It was only natural that they ran.

Still, staring at where they'd disappeared only moments ago, he decided not to pursue. They would need time and he wasn't certain he could handle two scared younglings. For the moment, he would leave them be—let them adjust on their own. They wouldn't be hard to find anyways, what with that overpowering stench of theirs.

* * *

Atche ran. He ran and ran and _ran_ until the skin of his feet turned raw. It took a while before he finally settled on a hiding place behind one of the smaller buildings, allowing his body to fall from panic-mode only when he was sure no one was pursuing. All was quiet as he slid down the wall, taking deep, haggard breaths as his shaky arms fell limp against his sides, releasing his younger brother.

He thought that man was safe. He thought that, despite the _hell_ that round monster put them through, things would be okay. The blond, robed in colours of warmth and fire, dressed in cloth so rich Atche was left speechless, was their last hope. But when he looked around all he saw were monsters—dozens of them! They weren't safe there! That was why he had to get them away; he had to protect his brother.

Luhfi crawled out of his lap, blinking with owlish eyes as the elder caught his breath. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine, Lu, don't worry."

"But Atche—"

"I'm _fine_," he insisted, tousling his sibling's hair. The last thing he needed was for the brat to think something was wrong, especially when he wasn't sure himself.

That man hadn't hurt them. He didn't seem to particularly like them, but he'd done no wrong, either. It felt great, being free of the shackles once chaffing his wrist, and why would he free them if he wasn't good? But Atche also saw the danger in his eyes—the distaste he held for them, for what they were. When he saw the creatures surrounding them, all looking at him and looking at _Luhfi,_ he panicked. He couldn't stay, couldn't risk them hurting his brother. So he ran.

"You sure?"

Pleading eyes met his and he had to smile, hugging his sibling close. "I'm sure. Now let's get out of here, okay?"

The boy broke out in a grin so wide it should have been impossible. "Okay!"

He remained calm on the outside, but cursed inwardly as he looked ahead, eyes falling on a tall, white outer wall enclosing the compound. No trees around, no grooves in the stone—how would they get out? But he couldn't voice his uncertainties. He couldn't let Luffy know that something was wrong.

_Fuck_.

He had to try. There had to be _some way_. So he gathered his brother into his arms, ignored the searing pain as tiny rocks embedded themselves in the pads of his feet, and ran.

But eventually robes of fiery reds and oranges entered his vision and by then he could no longer run.

* * *

After twenty minutes of waiting the phoenix decided to locate the runts, continuing where they left off. They were _not _pleased by that, kicking and squirming to try to break free, shouting nonsense at him as though he understood. Considering how furiously they resisted, he was glad he'd changed into less constricting, simpler robes before fetching them.

Marco gave up trying to lead his new 'pets' anywhere. It was obvious they couldn't be trusted to follow simple directions after the third time the taller one tried to bolt. Annoying, savage little human.

Since they refused to listen or follow along quietly, he was stuck carrying them. Dragging them did _not_ work; the small one somehow latched on to _everything_. It was trying and exhausting. Both of them shouted gibberish at him, kicking his chest when he let go of their legs to open the doors. At long last he found what he was looking for: a room he could toss the damn brats into that _should_ hold them. At least long enough to find a servant to dump them onto and get Thatch over before he was forced to murder the damn things for his sake of mind.

"You. Humans. Stay. STAY, yoi." Well, they paused long enough for him to breathe a sigh of relief. That was something, right? "Are you hungry?"

The taller one had the nerve to _growl_ at him as they locked glares. Asking them was pointless, it seemed, but at least he tried. Eyebrow twitching, he shut the doors and locked them in, turning to the nearest servant-in-waiting. The mythos, a dog who'd been working for his household for a number of months, jolted when tired eyes came to rest on him.

"Y-yes, Master Suzaku?"

"Watch them."

"…Excuse me, Milord?"

"You don't have to go inside yoi," they might have been diseased, so perhaps quarantine was in order, "just make sure they don't escape. Or hurt themselves." He peered into the window, watching as the pair studied the room, looking for another way out. Eventually the small one was cradled in the other's arms, soothing circles being rubbed into his back, and Marco had to sigh. Really, what was he thinking, taking in two human pets? "Understand?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Good," he replied as he walked away, rounding the corner to begin the long trek to another wing of the compound, one where he was sure a certain _cat_ would be lurking. He ignored the servants and guards who welcomed his return, greeted him with smiles and formalities that he just wasn't in the mood to deal with. Those human brats had irked him. He understood, though. They were someplace new and unfamiliar, separated from their species, their kin. So he couldn't be mad, really, but the brats left him wondering why he'd taken them in the first place. To keep them away from that damned carrion-lover and out of the troll's stomach? Was it _really_ worth it? They tried to _bite _him.

…He should have been prepared for that. Humans bite; he read that somewhere.

The blond had passed from his wing to the other, approaching a familiar room as he thought of just what to say, how to word it. Seeing no servants around, he didn't bother knocking—just stepped right in, watching as a clueless redhead turned his way, face breaking into a large grin as he tapped the mat he was sitting on.

"Marco, buddy!" he exclaimed, leaning forward as the blond's half-lidded eyes settled on him. "You survived the auction. I'm proud."

Immediately the phoenix deflated and accepted the invitation to sit with his brother, dropping across from him, eye's scrolling down to the cat's crossed legs. He always envied him for being able to sit like that, looking down as his own to see talons peeking from beneath his robes. Keeping those legs regardless of his form was a little annoying; he'd like to sit like that, too, but he didn't really feel like breaking his legs to do so.

"Somehow, yoi," he replied at length, pushing his weight onto his arms as he sighed. The day's stresses finally made themselves known in the form of a throbbing head.

"What'd you get me?" he teased.

"Nothing."

"Nothing?" the redhead echoed, face sagging into a pout.

Marco sifted through his memories to try to recall just why, exactly, he hadn't gotten anything for his brother. _Ah, right._ "There was a jar of honeyed milinal apples," he stated offhandedly.

The cat gasped, clawed hands flying to his face in betrayal. "And you didn't get them for me? That hurts."

"That thunderbird bid on them—Doflamingo."

For a moment he was silent, grin returning as he shook his head. "Then I don't blame you. You birds and your bickering."

"It's not bickering yoi, it's—"

"Yeah, yeah," he interrupted, waving the blond off. Thatch never really cared about matters like that. Perhaps it was because he was too carefree, perhaps because a tiger didn't care for the hierarchy of winged beings, but he never bothered with it. "Did you at least get something for the old man?"

"Alcohol."

"Izo?"

"Combs."

"And yourself?"

He paused, pulling his mouth taut. "That's why I'm here yoi." His only response was a quizzical stare. Sometimes Marco wondered how, exactly, he managed to bond with a tiger. He remembered a time long ago when simply humouring the idea of getting along with a cat was ridiculous. When they were alone like that, isolated in Thatch's wing, he would be reminded of those dangerous claws, teeth sharp enough to rip through flesh. "I seem to have acquired some humans."

The redhead blinked, staring blankly before an enthusiastic gleam entered his eyes. "Need help?"

And whenever he would hesitate, the cat would say something to make his doubts disappear.

* * *

Thatch asked him what seemed like hundreds of questions as they walked back towards the room where he had left the two human nestlings. Of course the fact that he knew none of the answers disappointed his friend, but there was nothing he could do about that. He didn't spend much time with his new pets, and honestly he hadn't been all that interested in finding out much about them. So he didn't know things like their height or weight. But he was able to answer that they did have clothes, even if they were rudimentary, and they were shoeless. Marco was proud that he'd noticed that at least. Still, he caught Thatch's almost silent huff of exasperation more than once during the walk and resolved to pay at least a little more attention. His brother was right; they were his responsibility now.

"Is this the room?" Thatch asked, reaching the door the servant stood in front of.

"Yes."

"Great!" The cat ignored all decorum and ran the rest of the hall, sliding to a stop in front of the door and almost bowling over the servant so he could look through the window, a wide grin on his face as he craned his neck. Marco watched with a small grin of his own, walking at a much more sedated pace. Thatch's brows wrinkled and he pressed up against the glass, frowning before turning to him. "Marco, what humans? All I see is a busted-up chair."

He felt a flutter in the pit of his stomach that he refused to admit could be panic. The room was secure. There was no way they could have gotten out—they were hatchlings for gods' sake! Looking himself he saw what the tiger meant and cursed under his breath before unlocking the door and hurrying in, Thatch on his heels. Hearing a high-pitched shout behind him, it might not have been the smartest idea to enter the room with two feral human hatchlings loose in it. Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of his two new pets charging him with the missing pieces of the chair, running as fast as they could. He was shocked, too shocked to move until Thatch shoved him from behind, saving him from getting hit in the stomach by the taller one. Then the tiger was between him and the two humans.

Thatch spun, somehow scooping up the shorter one and pinning it under his arm even as it screamed bloody murder, swinging the leg of a chair around like a club. The second little hell-beast he disarmed quickly, catching its wrists in his hand with a laugh as it bit him. "Feisty. Reminds me of when Zoro and Kuina were cubs."

"I _told_ you they bite."

"Well, what else do you expect him to do, Marco? His hands are trapped. Humans are very handsy," Thatch grouched, wiggling his arm slightly and getting the one who bit him to bare its teeth around his flesh. Well, far be it for Marco to question him; Thatch was the human-lover, after all. He couldn't see what the cat saw in those creatures, but it was times like those that he was thankful for his knowledge. "Just like I thought—cubs. Look, it's still got its milk-teeth."

"All humans have those dull-looking teeth," the phoenix lord pointed, though he was already aware they were human young.

"You bird-brain, look how small they are. Trust me on this: they're cubs. Man, you need to spend more time around younglings." Thatch sighed, letting his captives go. Both sprung back and eyed the tiger warily as he smiled at them. He said something, still smiling, and Marco had no clue what it was. After a beat, he said something else. And again. And again.

"What are you doing yoi?"

"Asking if they're hungry."

"I tried that."

Thatch just _looked_ at him. "I'm trying in human languages."

"How many stupid dialects are there?"

"Marco. Brother. Humans aren't like us. They can't travel like we can. So all sorts of places have different _languages_. As in two _humans_ might not understand each other. There're hundreds of _languages_ they could speak. And I only know a few dozen, alright? Don't even get me started on dialects."

"I still say they're speaking gibberish, yoi."

"Whatever, phoenix." He turned his attention back to the two little monsters. "_&*&^ Hungry?"_

_"Yes…?"_ the little one burbled before the bigger one shoved him further away from Thatch.

"_Luhfi! No, don't! It might eat you!"_

_"But Atche! What if it was gonna feed us? I'm starving!"_

"Gotcha." Thatch grinned, holding his hand out to Marco. "Give me the smallest loaf in my bag, 'kay?"

"You understood that yammering?"

"Honestly? Not really. They were talking too fast and I only sort of recognized one or two words. _But_ it's close to this other language I've come across once or twice. So…" He took the loaf and held it up so it was clearly visible. Even Marco had to admit it smelled fantastic. He glanced over at his new pets and saw them both swallow at the sight of the brown bread. Thatch spoke again. "_You hungry?" _The two shared a look before hesitantly nodding at the tiger. He smiled, ripped the loaf in half and held it out. When they reached out for it he pulled back slightly. "_Hungry, YES?_"

_"...Yes,_" the taller one replied. "_Gods, yes."_

"_Starving...Uh... I mean yes!"_

Whatever it was they'd said seemed to be the answer Thatch was looking for, though judging by the way his friend's hair was standing up on the back of his neck he wasn't _happy_ about the answer. He still handed over the bread without a fuss, and it was gone in seconds.

Marco stood quietly off to the side, leaning against the wall to observe his brother as the humans ate. Admittedly, the cat had them behaving a lot better than he did. He wasn't exactly very compassionate towards the little savages, though, so that may have been the problem.

The redhead laughed when the little one reached out with a splayed hand, staring expectantly. "Alright, alright," he conceded, "just a bit more. Marco."

He blinked before, again, retrieving a small loaf from the sack Thatch had brought with him and handing it over. It was a good thing he did; for the life of him, Marco could remember what they ate. Trust the human-lover to come to the rescue.

Thatch's smile softened into a more sympathetic look as he ripped it half twice, holding out a quarter for each. "You two want more? _Hungry?_"

Immediately the small child went to grab it but paused, looking to the other for permission. The tall one seemed hesitant at first but glanced between the mythos before nodding.

_"Go ahead, Lu. It… it should be okay."_

The younger smiled as he snatched it from the tiger's hands and shoved the whole thing in his mouth, immediately holding out his palm once more. Thatch refused that time, to his displeasure, and handed the elder the second quarter.

"And don't even think about giving it to the kid," Thatch commanded, fully aware that neither would understand. But when the boy went to do just that, he lightly slapped his hand away and shook his head. _"No. Bad."_

Marco quirked an eyebrow, arms folded across his chest as he watched. "They're still hungry yoi?"

"Yeah," the redhead answered with a sigh, "but I shouldn't give them any more. I don't think they were being fed; they might have trouble keeping it down."

He hummed in thought. Hancock was just as hateful of humans as he, though she was far more ruthless. The phoenix held pity, but the snake was far colder. He would have been surprised to learn that she _had_ taken care of them.

"Say, Marc," the cat began, voice dropping to a contemplative tone, "why'd you take them? You don't know anything about humans and you're not exactly… well, I _know_ you. I mean a pet, fine, but _humans_?"

He met his brother's eyes evenly before sighing, running a hand through his blond tuft of hair. "If I hadn't they would have become troll fodder or a carrion-lover's plaything yoi. I did what I felt was right at the time."

The redhead nodded. "Do you regret it?"

Blue eyes scrolled from the mythos to the mortal pair as the tall one snuck tiny bites to the smaller behind the tiger's back and he snorted, shaking his head. They'd been annoyingly loud throughout the day but, well, he couldn't blame them. For pets they were about what he expected, however…

"I don't know yoi."

They were young; he knew what they would grow into, had seen it first-hand. Knowing that, he couldn't _like_ them. But for now they were just hatchlings, weren't they?

After a long, drawn-out silence, Thatch motioned the humans to the mats in the corner. It wasn't long before their eyes drooped, their exhaustion catching up with them as they huddled together. The elder resisted sleep, fighting to stay awake, but it seemed like a fruitless effort.

"We're not going to eat you in your sleep, cub. It's okay."

He huddled closer to his kin, cuddling him as he drifted off, leaving Thatch to release a relieved breath before turning back to the blond. "What're you going to do? We gotta leave to see the old man tomorrow and you _know_ not everyone's going to be too thrilled about you bringing a pair of human cubs to the main compound."

Marco groaned. He was right; they would definitely be met with protest. But it wasn't like he could go back on his commitment. "I'm going to speak to Oyaji about it yoi. I'll leave them here until we can prepare a place for them."

"Leave them with who?" the cat questioned. "I'd be all for it, but I have to go, too."

"I was thinking a servant. That one Dalmatian recommended has experience with humans, yoi."

"You sure you can trust him? I mean, they're _humans_ so…"

He knew what he was implying, but…

"Do I have a choice yoi?"

"…Good point."

The pair moved over to the table across the room from the sleeping hatchlings, watching them carefully. "It should only be a few days, then we can bring them to the main house. I doubt too much damage could be done in such a short time-frame."

"And then?" Thatch pressed. "What'll you do after that?"

The phoenix lord released an airy breath, rubbing circles into his temple. "I don't know."

* * *

_"I'm leaving you in charge of them, yoi."_

"_You honour me, Sir! I will do my best to please you!_" Atche didn't trust the way the dog-eared man kept looking at him and Luhfi. Hugging his little brother closer, he shifted nearer to the redhead. True, he didn't trust him much either, but so far out of all the monsters they'd seen he'd rather take his chances with the blond and the redhead. They at least _looked_ like people.

"_Dalmatian said you had experience with humans?"_ The blond glanced down at him and Atche glared, knowing that they were talking about them. He hated not knowing what anyone was saying. The dog-eared man nodded his head eagerly. "_We should only be gone a few days, Ligi._ _Just keep them out of trouble, yoi."_

He caught a hand out of the corner of his eye reaching for him and he ducked, pulling Lu by the hand with him as he edged away from the redhead who just offered him a small smile. _"And feed them."_

"_I will do more than that, sirs! Why, when you get back, you shall come home to the most well-behaved slaves—"_

_"They're not slaves. They're pets."_

_"My humble apologies. The most well-behaved PETS. I guarantee it."_

The blond sighed, eyes cutting to where Atche stood watching them. "_Don't trouble yourself too much, yoi._" Then he knelt and held out his hand. Warily Atche inched closer, but not close enough for him to reach out and grab him. He still resented being carried like a sack of grain. "_Pet…"_ The blond looked up at the redhead.

"_Go on._"

"_They can't understand me, yoi."_

"_It doesn't matter, you still need to make the attempt. Take responsibility, Marco."_

"_Fine._" Blue eyes met gray, "_I'm leaving you for a few days. You'll be fine. Ligi will care for you. Be good._" As the blond stood and turned to leave in a swish of orange and red, Atche took an involuntary step forward. Something told him he did _not_ want him to leave. He glanced up at the dog-man and shivered. No, he definitely didn't want to be left with that monster.

Luhfi trotted after them and tugged on the flowing fabric of the pants the blond was wearing now instead of the incredibly detailed skirt from before. "Please, Lady… Don't go!"

_"Let go, yoi."_ A firm but gentle tug pulled the fabric from his brother's grasp and before either could do anything about it the door was shut in their face, leaving them in the room with the dog. Atche had never felt so betrayed in his life as he did in that moment when the dog looked at the two of them and _smiled_ before he left as well.

Atche wasted no time rushing to the door and trying the handle, but it was locked. He knew better than to try the windows; they were shuttered closed and they'd already tried them the day before anyway. Instead he focused his energy into pounding on the door as hard as he could, kicking the wood for good measure, even if it made his toes hurt a little. "HEY! LET US OUT! HEY! Are you there?! HEY! Come back! Please! Don't just LEAVE!" A glance over his shoulder showed him that Luhfi was sitting a bit behind him, staring at the door with a pout on his face. He banged harder. "At least feed us! Please…" _I'm scared, _"come back!"

The door swung open, surprising him, and he hurried to get out of the way, an almost hopeful smile on his face until he saw it was the dark-haired dog-man. His reddish eyes pinned the young boys in place as he shut and locked the door, closing them in with him. Atche took a shaky step backwards when the monster turned his whole attention towards him while reaching into his tunic.

He tried to dart around the dog-eared man and get to the door and his brother but the other was faster, stronger. The man growled as he pinned his smaller body down on the unforgiving tile and held it in place with a firm knee between his shoulder blades. "_Master Suzaku had said you were too noisy. I see he was right. Let's see you yap with this on._" A hand in his hair yanked his head off the floor and he felt something cold press against his neck as he continued to squirm. It was hard to breathe with that much weight pressing down on him; the edges of his vision were starting to get fuzzy. He kept kicking and thrashing, desperate to get out from under the dog-man and back over to his little brother. And then the weight was gone.

He shoved himself to his feet, lungs heaving as he fought to catch his breath again. But it was so hard, he felt so dizzy, like he still couldn't get enough air. "YO-yo—" he croaked. Atche's hands flew up to his throat. There was something _there_. It was hard and cold, and _hecouldn'tbreathe_—sinking back to his knees he glared up at the man who just jeered down at him.

"_Good slave. Now for the other one._" His blood ran cold when the monster turned towards his brother

Luhfi screeched, but there was nowhere to hide, and Atche couldn't let him hurt his baby brother. Gathering what strength he had he half-stumbled, half-lunged and managed to grab onto the dog-man's leg. "P-ple-se 'nt!"

"_Get the fuck off me, you filthy human!_" A foot lashed out as the man snarled, catching the boy in the stomach and sending him rolling. He couldn't breathe—he almost completely blacked out. Atche forced himself to stay awake, to listen as his brother was caught and _collared_ while he just lay there completely helpless and unable to catch his breath from one stupid blow. After what felt like hours of silence he saw padded feet in front of him. He blinked dully, still panting and trying to get enough air as he looked up at the sickly smiling face. The bastard had his little brother on a chain. "_Much better, don't you think, slave?_"

He let out a sound halfway between a growl and a whimper when the dark-haired monster reached down and did something to the tighten band around his neck. Atche desperately wanted to shout curses and scream at him, but he couldn't seem to get enough air into his lungs. It hurt, and it scared him—what's worse was the fact that his little brother had to suffer the same way. Feeling a tug at his throat he swore to himself that he would be strong for Luhfi, that no matter what this _monster_ did, he would not break. Because Lu was just as lost and confused, and he needed his big brother.

"_Up." _The tug became a yank and he was forced to scramble to his feet or be dragged after the dog-man as he left the room. He couldn't even reach out to his brother to comfort him; the man held their chains in different hands and they were too short to allow that. _"This room is too nice for the likes of humans like you. I've set up just the place."_ Red-brown eyes glared down at him. "_After you've earned a rest, of course._"

* * *

Atche was completely and utterly lost. The monster had half-dragged, half-led them somewhere so fast it was all he and his brother could do to stay on their feet and try and keep up. Now they were _somewhere_, but he had no clue what it was supposed to be. It was sort of wide and open, but there were all these benches and tables around too. He found himself scrambling backwards when the dog-man turned around and reached for him, only to find himself yanked closer by the chain attached to his neck. Then he was shoved roughly away towards a table, the sudden freedom making him momentarily clumsy. Warily he watched the man release his brother in a similar manner and tensed, thinking immediately about escape. The thought fled just as quickly, though. With the collar so bruisingly tight around his throat there was no way he'd be able to run for long carrying Luhfi before he collapsed, and there was no telling what _this_ monster would do to him if he tried, but he didn't think it would be pretty.

"_What good slaves, waiting for your orders._" The creature sneered at them, dropping a full bucket and two brushes down on the table with enough force to make the younger of the two jump. _"Here's your first task. Scrub these tables spotless._" Luhfi inched closer to him, his small hand fisting in the hem of his worn-out shirt in an attempt to find comfort as both boys stared uncomprehendingly at the man before them. It was obvious enough he wanted something from them, but neither was sure what it was. After a long moment of the three staring at each other the dog-man let out a growling huff, "_Barbaric savages. I SAID: SCRUB. THESE. TABLES. SPOTLESS. UNDERSTAND?"_

Atche rolled his eyes. "Like being louder is going to make me suddenly understand what you want." Red-brown eyes narrowed dangerously and he held his hands up defensively. A brush was roughly shoved into his hand and his arm was nearly wrenched from its socket as the dog-man forced him to scrub hard in circles that were much too big for him before shoving him face first into the dirty suds on the table. Looking up at the monster watching them he swallowed. The message was clear: scrub the table or else. "Come on Lu… Just do what I do, alright?"

* * *

It hadn't been that long since he left the main compound for their southern one, but stepping inside Marco was met with a rush of nostalgia nonetheless. Of all the places he'd stayed over the many centuries he'd lived, none felt more at home. It was his place of peace, as he was sure it would always be.

With Thatch close behind, the phoenix trekked further onto the property until he came to a pair of towering doors. The height always impressed him even when fully aware that they housed a giant and he took a moment to admire them before heading within. Inside he was greeted by two sets of eyes, both unmistakable after so many years.

For the life of him, Marco couldn't remember how the old man got his nickname. It'd been a long time. Still, hearing the name Whitebeard always managed to calm his nerves, put him at ease. And he had to smile when he saw Izo standing at their father's side, waiting patiently for them with bottled excitement.

They made it halfway to Newgate's chair when the crossdresser rushed them, unable to contain himself any longer. He threw his arms around Marco's shoulders, giving him a tight squeeze. "It's about time you came home," he muttered into the bird's ear before pulling away, "I was beginning to think you forgot about us."

"It's only been a few weeks yoi," he pointed, but the smile on his lips only grew.

"A few weeks are all it takes." Gray eyes scrolled down to the bag hanging limply from clawed fingers, a mischievous glint arising as he yanked it from the blond's hands, the other all too willing to give it up. "So?" he questioned giddily as he rummaged through it, "What'd you get me?"

"Combs," the phoenix replied as a pale, slender hand immerged from the sac, holding the aforementioned objects in front of his younger brother's face.

Izo's expression lit up instantly as he looked them over, holding them up to the light to get a good look. "They're beautiful," he declared before moving in to give the elder another appreciative squeeze, "thank you."

With that the crossdresser turned for the first time to Thatch, face falling instantly into a scowl. The redhead couldn't so much as open his mouth before the other turned away, walking back to the old man's side without so much as a word. Marco blinked, a bit taken aback by that. Normally Thatch and Izo got along perfectly, aside from some pointless bickering now and then. Turning to the tiger for answers didn't seem to help, either, as he seemed just as confused, meeting his quizzical stare with a shrug.

Never one to dwell, Izo's actions were quickly forgotten as Marco stepped forward and presented Newgate with the alcohol he'd bid on the day before, the giant's calming laugh soothing to his ears.

"Thank you, my boy," Edward began, reaching out with a massive hand to give his son an appreciative pat on the head. "I trust you enjoyed yourself."

"Of course yoi," he readily provided. It wasn't a _complete _lie; his mood only turned sour when that damned Doflamingo got involved. And as much as he'd fretted over the humans in the beginning, Thatch's calming reassurance had alleviated most of his negativity. Perhaps his recklessness wasn't as much of a mistake as he thought.

"And? What else have you acquired?" the giant pressed as he looked the bottle over in the light, its size far too small to quench the thirst of someone of his tribe.

"Anything interesting?" Izo pressed.

Thatch chuckled from beside him, earning narrowed eyes. "Oh yeah, definitely interesting."

"I didn't ask you, _cat_," Izo replied, glaring once more at the feline before smiling at the blond. "What is it? Can I see?"

Pressing two fingers to his temple, the phoenix sighed. He'd hoped to ease them into it but Thatch, as talkative as ever, had forced him to speed up the conversation. He took a seat nearby, directly facing the old man. "I seem to have acquired some human nestlings yoi."

Everyone went silent.

"…Human?" Izo echoed, smile fading.

He nodded, "Human."

"…And they're just kids?"

"Yes."

"How many?"

"Two."

"…_Human_?"

"_Yes_ yoi."

"_You_ though? _You're_ taking care of some humans?"

His patience was running thin. Thatch had already questioned him about that. Repeatedly. But then his father laughed and he relaxed, his nerves put to rest once more.

"And you wish to bring them here, my son?" Marco nodded. "It won't be easy."

Suddenly Izo seemed to snap back to his senses and he jolted. "That's right; everyone's going to have a fit. I mean _I_ don't care—kids are kids—but the family and the waiting staff…"

Thatch stepped forward. "I'll help him," he chimed with a grin, "so it'll be fine."

The youngest shot him a look, shutting him up immediately. "Don't you start; your confidence lacks backing. Marco, don't rely on that one, he's an idiot."

The old man smiled, preventing the tiger from coming up with some sort of retort, and the three looked his way. "You'll have to convince them, Marco."

"I know, Oyaji."

"It won't be easy."

"…I know."

Thatch curled an arm around the blond's shoulders, pulling him close. "Give us three days, tops."

Izo snorted. "Bullshit. You're not that charming, Byakko."

"And you should stay out of this, Genbu."

The crossdresser rolled his eyes, ignoring the comment as he turned to Marco. "Trust me, it'll be at least a week. You have a _lot_ of people you need to convince if you wanna let those kids live here."

The phoenix slouched back, feeling the warning signs of a headache emerge as he took that in. He knew it wouldn't be easy, but what choice did he have? "I know."

* * *

"I'm not afraid. I'm _not_ afraid," Atche whispered to himself as he furiously scrubbed the tears that continued to fall. He couldn't afford to cry. Luhfi might wake up and hear him, not that he had to worry about his brother _seeing_ him. The room that _bastard_ tossed them into whenever he was done with them was completely dark—dark, tiny, cold, quiet, and smelly. That could have had something to do with the bucket they were expected to relieve themselves in. In a way it was a good thing the dog-monster had only fed them… once—no, wait, twice. He'd fed them the time before last. It made less waste.

He felt his little brother shiver and wrapped the burlap they'd been given around them a little tighter. Lu had fallen asleep almost immediately after being tossed into the cell—that was the only word for it—exhaustion winning the war against hunger and pain easily. That had left his older brother to worry over him in the dark as he felt along fragile limbs for any breaks and locating by feel all the new bruises on his brother. He didn't bother checking himself; he could _feel _the damage. Every whip of the cane, every punch or kick he took, though, was one his brother didn't have to.

Sometimes it was easy to tell _why_ they were being punished. They needed to work faster (as if they could, as starved and small as they were). They didn't do something right (Atche had never done laundry before. The monster took exception to the suds. _Extreme _exception). They tried to take a break. They broke something. Other times, Atche had no clue _why_, and those times scared the hell out of him, because the dog-man was brutal. Those times, he didn't use the cane; he rained down blows with his fists, spitting horrible words at them that the boys didn't have to understand to _know_ were bad.

"_NOT_ afraid…." He bit his lip against a whimper that made a liar out of him, glad for once that Luhfi was a heavy sleeper. The truth was, he was _terrified_ of the door opening, but he was just as scared of it _not_ opening. Sometimes he'd think they'd have only been in the little cell-like room for a few minutes in the morning to be dragged out into the middle of the night. Other times it would feel like _days_ had passed since the door had budged, and yet when they'd finally be let out, it would definitely have only been an hour or so, signs from their last task still visible. He felt like he was going insane.

"Ache?" Luhfi muttered, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He scrubbed his eyes again, even though he knew his brother couldn't see him. Sighing, he settled more firmly against the cold floor, his back to the wall to keep Lu a little warmer. He _was_ afraid—but there was nothing he could do about it but deal with it the best he could, because that's what big brothers did. Luhfi didn't need to know how badly scared he was. It was best to just try and get some sleep while he could, because there was no telling when the monster would come back and their hell would start again. "Go back to sleep, Lu. It'll be alright."

* * *

Seven days. Seven days of fighting with the household, with both family and staff as he and Thatch slowly won their favour. He knew it wouldn't be easy, that getting them to agree to allow a pair of humans into the compound would be like pulling teeth—he was just barely able to accept it himself, after all—but to go one for one _full week_ had been more than just trying. Were he as passionate as the tiger he might not have kept his sanity. How did Thatch do it? How did he keep his composure through all the snarling and bickering and prejudice? And to be honest, Marco had found himself doing the same as those cretins many times before. He wasn't innocent.

Finally they'd overturned the household's opinions—partially, at least. They still weren't thrilled about the idea and made that _very _clear but, well, they'd been worn down enough to allow the humans inside, at least. And Thatch assured he'd help Marco with whatever he needed, so that was a plus. Most of the knowledge he had on the species had withered with the ages. When was the last time he allowed a human to get so close?

Wings of fire glided along the wind, leaving streaks of bright blue in his wake as he flew through the skies towards the southern compound. It'd taken a good hour but he could finally see the rooftops peeking from between the clouds and he dove lower in preparation to land. Thatch was coming via carriage; he would arrive soon after. Marco's first task was to relieve Ligi of the humans; what was intended to be only three days became seven and he was sure the dog had lost his patience with the younglings. He couldn't really blame him, seeing how they'd tested his patience after only one day.

As he descended over the garden his sight caught on minute movement in one of the trees. He spotted a messy head of black hair moments before the branch the boy was crawling on snapped. Instantly he swooped low, catching the boy's shirt between his talons before lowering him gently to the ground. The elder human rushed to them before eyes caught on the bird and he froze in place, eyes wide with shock and fear.

Was he that intimidating?

The little one flopped over to stare up at him from the ground, meeting him not with his usual smile but with fright as he pushed himself back, scrambling towards his kin as fast as his weak legs could carry him.

…Weak?

Not dwelling on their reactions he began to morph, returning to the form they recognised and watching as realisation took over. They huddled together with big, shocked eyes staring his way, almost uncomfortably so, muttering nonsense. Not their human language—no, these weren't words—but soft sounds, frighten whimpers hushed under their breath, sounds of fear reminiscent of a cornered animal in the wild.

He narrowed his eyes. "You're quiet yoi." As much as the noise drove him mad when he last saw them, this sudden obedience was unsettling. It didn't feel right. What's worse was that they weren't even _speaking_ when they mumbled, not even the gibberish he heard before.

Suddenly the servant, Ligi, rounded the corner into the garden, stiffening as he looked between the phoenix, the broken branch and the boys. He gaped when things seemed to click in his head, hurrying over to them with long, hasty strides. Marco noticed the way the humans shrunk back when he neared. Something was _very_ wrong.

"My lord!" the dog exclaimed, pushing the boys aside to stand directly in front of the blond, "I am deeply sorry! I only stepped away for a second, I—"

"Why was my pet in the tree yoi?" His voice was even, not allowing for excuses.

Ligi blinked, a bit taken aback by the accusative tone that was used before he recovered well enough to answer. "I couldn't say, when I left—"

"He was reaching for a fruit," Marco pointed, eyes turning sharp as he looked the servant over. Something was definitely off. He noted the way the gwyligi hesitated at that, mind arriving at the same conclusion his did. "You know what would have happened if he ate it yoi. I'm beginning to question your capabilities as a servant to this family." The fruit from the trees in the garden were deadly, to only be consumed when permission from its owner was granted—the owners in that case being the family Ligi served under.

"I was careless, Master Marco. Please do accept my apologies," he requested with a bow, never breaking as he returned upright to glare at the human boys. He latched onto the tiny one's arm, pulling him near as he glared. Immediately the elder reached out, making those same quiet noises as he tried to free his kin from the dog's grasp. "_Listen_ human: I will not—"

"Don't _touch _him," Marco commanded, his voice unyielding as the mythos turned surprised eyes his way. Despite his shock the servant listened, unhanding the tiny one and allowing him to be shielded protectively by the other's arms. The blond's eyes softened as he looked at them, suddenly regretting that he'd left them with such a reckless servant. He'd have to have a talk with Dalmatian about the staff he'd recommended.

Not allowing another word to pass, he spun around in a flurry of fiery reds and oranges as his robes swayed, reaching up to pick a fruit from the tree. The fruit's colour brightened ever so slightly, perhaps unnoticeable to a mortal, assuring that it was safe to eat. He then looked back at the boys, watching with sympathy as they cowered, and took a few steps closer. The elder murmured lightly, voice cracking as he inched away, but the bird paid no mind as he crouched down and held out the fruit for the little one to take.

The human looked between the offering and the phoenix, his mouth watering even as he held tighter to his kin, never once reaching out for it.

"This is what you wanted, isn't it? You can take it; it's safe now."

They still didn't move. Somehow he doubted it was because they didn't understand. Perhaps it was their trembling that tipped him off, or the way they flinched whenever he made to move, or—

His body went cold as he noticed the metal rings around their throats, the chains hanging limply against their torsos and the discoloured flesh peaking from underneath.

"Ligi," he called dangerously, never once looking up from what he'd seen.

"…Yes, my lord?"

"Leave_. Now._"

"Y-yes, my lord." Immediately the servant bowed and turned-tail, vanishing from his periphery within seconds.

Marco took a deep, shivering breath as he dropped the fruit carelessly to the ground, reaching out towards the marred necks of his humans. The elder wasted no time in lifting the nestling into his arms and backing away, as though the bird's touch would be just as harmful as those rings around their throats. They weren't like that before. They were scared, but not like that—_never_ like that.

Swallowing, the blond lowered his hand. "It's okay," he assured, "I won't… I'm not like him yoi. Whatever happened… it's over now, alright?"

When the elder turned to run he grasped his shoulder, watching as the human winced and writhed, barely able to keep himself standing through the pain. His stomach turned at the implication but he took that chance to scoop them both up, ignoring it as they thrashed in his arms. He needed a room—somewhere empty, somewhere _safe_.

The building overlooking the garden was empty. He let them down in one of the rooms and they scrambled away, _terrified_ of him, and he bit his lip. Thatch would arrive soon; it was only a matter of time. When he did they could figure out what had happened, but for the time his only goal was to get them to calm down. The last thing he wanted was for them to be scared.

* * *

"Shhhh, it's alright little ones," Thatch hummed, doing his best to appear as harmless as possible even though he could tell it wasn't going to work. Both of the human cubs huddled as far away from them as they could get, eyes wide and pupils dilated as they watched every move either man made. If it were possible, he'd have sworn the taller one would have melted into the wall when Marco took one step forward.

Marco sighed, crouching low. Both cubs shivered and their heart-rates picked up. "This isn't working yoi."

"No, it's not," he admitted. They'd been at it for a while now, and all they'd managed was scaring the poor things more. He felt horrible about it; the room reeked of fear. Whatever Ligi had done while they'd been away had crushed—no, _destroyed_—the fragile trust he and Marco had managed to build in a day. That was just the start of it, too. Under the fear scent he could smell blood, and both were thin, m_uch_ thinner than they had been when the two of them had left. There was going to be a reckoning... but first they had to find a way to examine the extent of the damage without scaring the cubs to death. _Something will happen if we use force, I'm sure. If only they were asleep we cou—_

"That's it!"

"What's it?'

Thatch shook his head, not wanting to waste time explaining, "Just stand here and try not to look too intimidating. Do NOT get close to them, alright? I'll be right back! I promise!" He ran to the medical room, knowing that the mythos in charge would have what he needed. She was a Sekhemt, after all—pretty little thing, too, if you had a thing for lions.

"Master Thatch!" she greeted, moving aside quickly as he barreled past her and made a beeline for the cabinet she kept her supplies in. "What—how can I help you?"

"Poppy syrup. Where is it?"

"I keep it locked up. You know it can be dangerous, my lord. How long have you been having trouble sleeping?"

He huffed impatiently as she went to measure out a dose. "It's not for me."

"Oh? Master Marco, then?"

"No. His humans."

Her expression changed, feline ears pinning back as her lip rose in a half-snarl. "Oh. _Them_. I'm sorry, my lord, but I do not have anything to give _humans_."

Thatch was on her in a flash, fur rippling across his hands as he twisted the arm holding the dosing vial roughly. "Do you mean to tell me that you _knew_ about what was going on?" She wouldn't meet his gaze but looked away, still snarling in defiance. He roared in her face, "AND YOU DID_ NOTHING?!_"

"I saw nothing wrong. They are humans; unless they are brought to heel _now_ and learn their place they are a danger to us all."

"They're cubs, woman! CUBS! Good gods, no wonder the humans think we're monsters! Where's the so-called compassion your clan prides itself on?" At that she flinched slightly and he let her go.

"Ligi said he was just training them."

"So you and everyone else turned a blind eye, and now two little human cubs… Just... give me the damn poppy syrup, woman." He was so mad he couldn't even look at her as he took the vial. "Next time… remember that they belong to _Marco_, and they're under _my_ protection as well. Because if something like this _ever_ happens again…" He turned and stormed out, trying to think calming thoughts before he killed the healer. He needed to be calm before he returned to the room. He also needed bread for his plan to work.

"Master Thatch—" she called out after him, "what about this time?"

Turning, he glared at her, eyes flashing dangerously, "You _all_ better pray they survive Ligi's _training_."

It took him a bit longer to cool down than he'd hoped, leaving him standing outside the door he and Marco had corralled the humans in, taking deep breaths. It wouldn't do to go in there tense with how high-strung the cubs were; they'd know in a heartbeat something was up and that would be a disaster. So instead he carefully soaked the two loafs of bread with the poppy syrup. The bread had been slightly stale and soaked up the liquid readily. Now the only worry was how much they'd eat—not that he didn't have enough to re-dose them if he needed to, but he was worried about them getting too much. Hopefully they'd pass out before that. He eyed the bread, "Just going to have to risk it, I guess."

Marco barely looked up when he opened the door, though both humans jumped almost a foot. "You took long enough yoi."

"Sorry. Had to calm down." He waved off the raised eyebrow. "I'll explain later. For now, follow my lead, alright?"

"Alright." Marco sat next to him on the floor, turning to keep the cubs in their periphery. "What is this?" He sniffed the bread.

"Poppy syrup soaked bread. Just pretend to eat it and keep talking."

"If you say so." He loved Marco. Only Marco ever went along with his plans. The two of them sat for a few moments in silence pretending to eat the bread. "I feel stupid."

"We look stupid, too." The cubs were watching them intently, still afraid but not quite as bad.

Finally Marco deflated, mental exhaustion showing through the drooping of his eyes. "…What am I going to do, Thatch?"

It was now or never. Slowly he stood and walked away from the food and Marco followed, keeping the humans just barely in their line of sight as they put more distance between them. "What do you _want _to do?"

"I was thinking of sending them back to the human realms." Marco went to glance at them and he shook his head.

"Don't look directly at them; you'll spook them." They'd finally reached the food and frozen in place, watching the two men.

"Sorry. Why can't we leave the room?"

"Because I want to make sure they don't drop dead, alright? That's a lot of poppy for the little guys, and I wanna be safe."

"Oh."

Thatch sighed in relief when the taller cub reached out and snatched a piece of abandoned bread. He took a large bite out of it before passing the rest over to his brother. It couldn't have tasted good if the look on his face was anything to go by, but it didn't seem to matter. His heart went out to them. "You _could_ return them."

"But?"

"What do you mean, but?" Brown eyes met blue and he remembered why he hated the bird sometimes. No one could _read_ him like Marco.

"There's something you don't like about that plan yoi. What is it?" There was no arguing with the man when he got like that.

"Fine. You do that and they'll be dead in a week, Marco." The phoenix looked at him, stunned. "I didn't want to tell you because I _know _how you are about humans. But that's the cold, hard truth. We don't know where in the human realms they came from. So our only option is to just dump them somewhere and hope for the best. Except they're not going to be able to communicate, _and_ they're younglings."

"Won't the other humans protect them?" The smaller cub let out a big yawn, dropping the piece of bread he'd been trying to gnaw on, his eyes closing.

He gave a mirthless laugh. "Do you know what some mythos do for fun, brother? They pretend to be human young—and then they_ eat_ the actual human younglings." He shook his head. "So no. Two human cubs, unable to talk to anyone? They'd suspect they were our young and kill them. Or even if they thought for a second they were human, they'd kill them anyway for being spies. Marco, even if it wasn't deliberate, those two are in no shape to protect themselves. And this is assuming they'd even _want_ to go near humans."

"They're terrified of us yoi," Marco pointed out as they both tried to ignore the hushed sounds of the taller cub trying to rouse the other. He sounded distressed, but they both knew it was for the best.

"You bought them off a naga whose troll found them chained up on a _human_ ship.

"..." Marco sighed, rubbing his eyes. "Then what do I do?"

Thatch watched as the taller cub swayed a moment on his knees before collapsing half on the other one. He gave a feeble half-moan and shook his head before laying still and the tiger was glad that part was over. Except the hard part would begin. He met Marco's eyes, "Tell me then: do you want to give them up because _you_ can't handle them, or is it something else?"

"I don't know what I'm doing! They're human!" Marco snapped back, turning towards the still forms. Despite the venom in his voice he was still gentle as he reached out and lifted one off the other. "…I don't want to make them suffer, though."

"You could just kill them now," he pointed out, hating himself for it. "They're sleeping—make it fast and they'll never know what happened. Some would say it would be a mercy after what happened."

The phoenix lord was silent. Whether he was actually considering it or thinking of the past was something Thatch couldn't say for sure. "No, it wouldn't be a mercy, would it?" He didn't think his friend was asking him. "Thatch, I want to do right by them."

"It'll be a lot of work," the tiger pointed out, grinning. Marco just nodded silently.

He didn't bother to watch to see how Marco was doing, instead focusing all of his attention on the task at hand. The collar was the most obvious thing wrong at first glance. At least until he slowly tore off the tattered remains of the poor cub's shirt. There was a large, yellowing bruise just below his ribs that was painful to look at, not to mention the numerous other marks that littered his torso and lower arms. Still, Thatch was relieved; it wasn't half as bad as he had feared. Gently he shifted the boy into a sitting position to get a look at his back. It was a good idea to be thorough.

The cub let out a moan, stirring slightly in his arms and he muttered a curse, pulling the vial out of his pocket and gently holding it to the limp form. It took some maneuvering, but Thatch managed to tilt some of the syrup into the mouth without spilling it all or suffocating the poor thing. Gently he ran a knuckle under the chin, noticing the scrapes and purple marks where someone had grabbed at the youngling more than once until he felt the boy swallow. Still he waited, counting the seconds as his eyes flitted over to Marco. His friend had not even divested the smaller one of his shirt and was going over his arms with overly controlled movements. He'd have to find a way to get Marco out of the room; his temper was fraying to the breaking point and he didn't think the man could handle what he feared he might find. His normally sleepy eyes had a slightly glazed look and he was breathing rapidly, as close to panting as a bird could get. It was a very bad sign.

"Marco, buddy, can you hear me?" Slowly his friend tracked up to him. "That's good. I need you to calm down, brother. Can you do that?" No answer. "You said you wanted to make it up to them, right? Look—I can fix this," _probably,_ "but not if you freak out on me. Not in here."

The other shook his head, "Can't."

"I know. Listen, I _know_ it's tough on you. So I got this. Okay? I got this here. So you can leave—" If his friend had been in his other form he would have been hissing and clanking his beak at him. _Obviously _Thatch should have worded that better. Quickly he continued before the man he considered family ripped him to pieces, "What I meant was you can go find a better room for their recovery, right?"

The phoenix paused, looking down at the two human cubs with his brow furrowed. "Recovery?"

"Yes. Because this room is too…" _don't say cage-like, don't say trapped, _"small. We want to give them space. And light." He patted himself on the back. "Not to mention it reeks of fear and sick in here. Can't have that, right?"

"...Right." Marco slowly nodded. "Need a good nest. A safe nest."

"Yes! Exactly! This isn't safe enough."

His friend shook himself slightly. "I can do that. You sure you can handle things yoi?"

"Yes." Thatch hoped he wasn't lying; he'd yet to see their backs yet.

Marco stood and in carefully-precise movements laid the smaller cub against Thatch's side. "I'm going to go have a _talk_ with Ligi as soon as we get them settled."

"_We'll_ do that—after we handle things here." He offered his own feral grin, earning a stiff nod. He felt no pity for the servant—not after seeing the collars.

Shoulders deflating slightly, relaxing, Marco left the room, glancing back only once before bringing the door to a gentle close behind him.

"Easy now, little cub," Thatch muttered, shifting the human like he was made of glass in order to get a look at his back. When he saw the strike marks along the ribs he hissed. They were obviously made by something thin and round, probably a cane. More than a few had split the skin as well, leaving scabs along the bony spine and ribcage that were red and inflamed. "No wonder you hurt, huh? Let's get a look at the rest of you." He gently leaned the boy forward against his arm and leg to get a better look at his lower back. Thatch froze, swallowing convulsively at the sight of flesh so bruised it looked black. It started just below the shoulder blades and continued as far down as he could see.

Worriedly he turned to the younger cub, knowing in his gut that if his back was as badly damaged there was no way he would survive. Not with the internal damage that was sure to go along with it at his small size. So it was a great relief to see that the youngling's back, while still a patchwork of blues, purples and yellows, was not one massive bruise. It still looked horrifyingly painful and brutal on a body so tiny all the same.

"Master Byakko?" His head snapped up and he didn't bother to stop the feral snarl that tore its way out of his throat as he hunched over his charges. The healer was standing in the doorway, a bundle held in her arms. "I-I thought you might be in need of assistance?"

"GET OUT!"

"But—y-your humans… I brought bandages. A-and a change of clothes for them? If it pleases you, that is?"

His temper flared, thinking of the blackened marks on the cubs… "Do you _see_ what that man has done?" he challenged her, "What you _allowed_ to be done to your _master's property_?"

For the first time the woman looked down to the still forms cradled protectively in his arms and he had to force himself to shift so she could see the extent of the damage. Her gasp was not half as satisfying as he had hoped. "But I—"

"Say one more word." She silenced herself. "You may leave the items here. Unless _Master_ _Suzaku or myself _requests otherwise, under no circumstances are you or any other servant allowed within the same _wing_ as his pets until further notice. _Do I make myself clear?_"

"Yes, Master Byakko," she whispered, gently laying the supplies as close to him as she dared. He could see the tears in her eyes but didn't know if they were for the cubs or for herself. He found he didn't care, either. It was too little, too late. "I... if there's anything I can do…. ask for Leigh. I promise, I won't let you down, Sir. _Anything_."

"I'll hold you to that. Now get out," he half-growled, turning his attention back to the task at hand. He wanted to bandage their wounds, but he wasn't about to do it with her in the room. The moment the door clicked shut he sighed, glowering at his hands. She'd gotten him so worked up his claws had grown. There was no way he'd be able to safely treat their injuries until he calmed himself.

"…But I might be able to pull the pins out of their collars." He grinned.

It was easier than he'd expected, actually. The collars were cheap, which in this case was a good thing, except it meant that they were heavy, much too heavy for those thin necks. He'd already suspected that they'd been too tight, but the way the small one's collar had almost flown off when he'd pulled the pin free made him sick. The taller cub had been no better off, either. It was no wonder they'd been nearly silent; getting the air to be even half as loud as he remembered them being would have been completely impossible. Gently rubbing the salve left with the bandages along the quickly-swelling flesh, he felt his gorge rise. He'd fed them drugged bread… and they could barely swallow with those things on. He could have killed them. It was a somber thought, and he was doubly glad Marco wasn't in the room. "Speaking of the feather-head, I'm sure he's had enough time to find the perfect room by now. Better get you two all wrapped up and changed before he comes back, huh?" he muttered to the still humans, gently petting their matted hair. "Don't worry; we'll take care of you."

* * *

Marco was very well-aware of why Thatch made him leave the room. He was thankful for it even as his mind supplied all sorts of horrors. Horrors he didn't know whether or not were true because he couldn't have stayed in that room a moment longer. Then again, he didn't need to see the damage, not when there was a certain dog running around who had all the answers. Eyes narrowing at the thought, he turned in mid-stride for the servant's quarters. It was the most likely place to start his hunt, and he doubted Thatch would mind or even notice a slight delay. He must have looked truly terrifying; servants ducked and scuttled out of his way, refusing to meet his eyes as he stormed the halls. "You there."

"Me?" a young servant stuttered at him, shocked to be addressed as he had attempted to duck past without being spotted.

"Where did Ligi keep my pets?"

"I-I'm afraid I—" wildly the man looked around for someone else, but everyone had wisely cleared out. Marco had never felt so disgusted with his staff before.

Blue eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't _lie_ to me." It was obvious that the servant knew. They probably _all_ had known. "Where?"

"I-in the south hall! The old wine closet. Please don't kill me, Sir!"

It was tempting to do just that. Instead he broke all protocol and lifted the man by the front of his tunic. "Find Ligi. Tell him to meet me there." Wordlessly the servant nodded and he dropped him. "Go." Immediately he did just that.

The wine closet. That bastard had thrown his pets into the _wine closet._

Reaching the south hall should have taken a while, but Marco made it in record time. That left him standing there waiting for Ligi in front of a locked door. The key to the room was supposed to be kept on a hook right above the door but it was noticeably missing, suggesting the dog carried it on him. The phoenix lord didn't bother to calm himself as he waited, instead letting his anger grow as he leaned against the wall. Before long he heard the sounds of someone hurling down the hall towards him and he didn't bother to look up.

"My lord! I did not expect to see you again so soon after your long trip!" Ligi wrung his hands together, "Are your sl-pets giving you trouble? I did what I could with the little savages, but-"

"Open it."

"Excuse me, Sir?" Reddish eyes blinked at him, surprised at being cut off.

"I heard you were keeping my pets in there."

"I was. Were you thinking of doi—"

"Open it now."

"Yes, of course, Master Suzaku!" The door was heavy, but not overly so by mythos standards. Just enough to keep the small room it hid chillingly cold with its marble floors and walls. To a human though, a young one especially, it would have seemed impossible to move. It also would have blocked out all sound and light to the small, dank room. He remembered suddenly why they'd stopped using this closet—the marble wept—as his eyes fell on the torn-up burlap sack by the door. One of its corners was wet. Wrinkling his nose he smelled waste, and his eyes quickly landed on the only other thing in the small room: a bucket. "As you can see, they were very secure in here."

His talons scraped against the tiled floor as he stepped towards the dog. "What gave you the _right_?"

"I don't understand, Sir." Ligi blinked up at him, "I was training them for you, just like I said I would. Are you not pleased with the results? They are much quieter now. Though I'm afraid they are a bit weak and stupid. Still, they're coming along nicely for humans."

"You-you _broke_ them!" he shouted back, voicing his fear. "They're terrified!"

"Good. They _should_ be terrified of mythos, of you. Humans know nothing of respect, of honor. The only way to control them is through fear."

"So you took _my pets_ and abused them?" Marco's eyes narrowed dangerously. "You deprived them of their freedom, of food, and _beat_ them? Who gave you permission to _touch_ them in such a way?"

The dog swallowed, taking a step back. "I was training them!" he repeated, "You were only supposed to be gone for a few days!" Marco closed his eyes, feeling sick. He could easily imagine what had happened. It was still no excuse, but it made him just as culpable. They should have taken the human hatchlings with them and damned the consequences.

"This isn't over, Ligi," he spat out. "Do you understand me? Not only did you damage what was mine, you disobeyed me and starved them. I will be dealing with you later."

"Yes, Sir." Ligi boldly met his eyes, "I understand you're upset. But if I may say, Sir? It's some of my best work. I've never been given human pups before. They take to training much better than adults."

He didn't even bother to answer the man as he turned. Marco had promised Thatch he'd find their hatchlings a nice, safe room to nest in, and he was going to do that. As far away from the south hall and the room it held as he could get.

* * *

The phoenix looked over the humans with soft, sad eyes. Earlier he and his brother had fashioned a nest of sorts with as many pillows and blankets as they could locate in the west wing, neither sure of how the boys would prefer to sleep. Currently the cushioning surrounded them as they lay on a soft, flat mat, a light blanket thinly veiling their waists, leaving the bruises and marks visible wherever their new clothes didn't cover.

His eyes settled on their bruised necks. That mutt had dared to _collar them_. As though the beatings weren't enough, as though starvation was too much of a kindness, he'd gone so far as to take away their dignity—their _freedom_. It made his stomach turn.

Marco looked between the younglings, awkwardly taking a few steps forward before lowering himself at the mat's edge. Clawed fingers lightly brushed the bangs from the elder's eyes, revealing yellowish bruises on the visible temple. Out of the two he seemed the most hurt, though that was only a guess; Thatch refused to let him see beneath the human's clothes, so he couldn't be sure. Being alone with them like that he was tempted to lift the shirt and see for himself but thought better of it. Even without seeing he'd almost snapped earlier; what would he do if he knew the extent of the damage that _swine_ had done?

As he sat there, watching their tiny chests move up and down, he thought back to the previous week, words from a tiger's mouth that he was starting to fully grasp: _"You still need to make the attempt. Take responsibility."_

"Pet…" He swallowed, mouth dry and nausea rising from the pit of his stomach as he looked over their battered, broken forms. They were so small, so tiny, and as helpless as they were they looked even more so. Humans were frail. Humans were weak. So easy to break… "I'm so sorry yoi—so, _so_ sorry."

The little one coughed, the only sound to break the silence as he waited for a never-to-come reply. He wished they could understand—or that _he_ could understand. He wished that he could apologise properly, listen to their frustrations. And even more than that, he wished they could tell him just _what_ Ligi had done. They could only guess by their injuries and the way they acted, but he wanted to _know._

"…Was it scary yoi? Were you confused? We left you alone with that… that—" He cut himself off, breath hitching before he sighed and cupped his forehead. "…Of course you were scared. Of course you were confused. Why am I…?"

The taller one stirred, falling from his side to lie on his back. He let out a small whimper, probably landing on whatever injuries Thatch hadn't wanted him to see. But their wounds, no matter how severe, would heal with time. The marks may leave scars, they many never completely go away, but they wouldn't hurt. That wasn't what worried the blond. What scared him were the marks around their necks, the way they acted when he returned. Such vocal little creatures when he left, yet even when they saw his other form—even when faced with the terror evident in their eyes as they set their sights on what he really was—they hadn't uttered so much as a word. They _didn't speak._ And that _terrified_ him.

_Has he broken you?_

Thatch said they couldn't live amongst humans. The humans would kill them; they couldn't return. And if they weren't scared of mythos before, they were now. After what had been done, would they ever be the same? Could they heal? Or was it too late? Living their lives every day, never letting go of the past, unable to move forward… was that really living?

The bird adjusted their blankets, having been kicked off during a restless tussle moments before. He never thought he would one day care for human young and maybe that was for the best; he'd certain done a horrible job of it.

"What is it you boys want, hm? Can you be happy? Can… can you smile again?" He remembered that first day, the only he spent with them, and the bright smile that crossed the little one's lips whenever their eyes met. Knowing he might never see it again, he regretted not paying closer attention. If he had known…

_"You could just kill them now."_

He could. When Thatch suggested it he'd refused but the more he thought, the more his resolve began to crumble. Was it selfish to force them to live or was it just? They'd been collared—_humiliated_—and abused in ways he _hated_ to admit that he understood. It was just one week. Seven days of fighting with the mythos at the main compound. Seven days of sensory deprivation. Seven days of beatings. And yet in just seven days they'd been shattered. They'd been broken. And Marco couldn't help but wonder if he would be able to continue on in their situation. If they hadn't returned then, if it continued for longer, what damage would have been done? How much worse could it get if continued for months—_years_?

_"Some would say it would be a mercy after what happened."_

Would it? Before he could think of an answer he found his fingers intertwined around the elder's neck, pressing lightly against the bruising. He rubbed his thumbs along the damaged skin, feeling his heart sink as he felt the swollen raise of where the collar had been. All it would take was a sudden jerk to snap the boy's neck, end his suffering, and he would never have to know. He wouldn't even feel it—a quick, painless death. Mythos weren't benevolent beings. He'd ended a life before. But he was so _young_, so small. Fragile, like glass.

"Hey," he whispered lightly, hesitantly as he held his hands around the boy's throat, "what… are your names?"

The human moved again, back onto his side, his arm falling across the younger's shoulders. He pulled the small one close, mumbling some incoherent words and Marco's lip quivered. His hands fell limp at his sides, any former motivation washing away with that one tiny, insignificant movement. He couldn't. Not when it was his fault—not when he didn't even know what to call them.

Releasing a shivering breath to steady his nerves, he reached out to adjust the blanket once more as it'd been knocked out of place by the last movement, noting the elder boy's heavily bandaged chest. The bird wondered, perhaps, if he was worse off because he was protecting the little one, taking his beatings. Something like that… it wouldn't be easy to do. They must have loved each other a lot, huh? It seemed even humans were capable of acts of selflessness. And he was about to end it all, just like that…

His eyes widened when the smaller boy's hand wrapped around his and he froze in place, completely immobilised by the feeling of warm flesh pressed against his own. Eventually he recomposed, being as careful as he could as he pulled his hand away, leaning back against the wall. His eyes scrolled to the bottom of his robe where his feet poked through the fabric's hem, the most obvious sign that he was a mythos bleeding through that form. All high-ranking creatures shared it, to some degree, and humans looked similar to them when they were like that. The blond felt a sudden rush of self-consciousness as his mind flashed to earlier in the day, how the boys reacted to seeing his other form, and he hurried to pull the fabric over his feet. Maybe it would be best to cover them around the humans. He didn't want to scare them.

Sighing, he glanced from the nestlings to the window and up at the pale moon, going over the day's events. He was going to have to have another long _talk _with Ligi come morning. "I promise," he started, knowing that even if they understood the language they wouldn't hear him while in such a deep slumber, "you won't have to worry about that _mutt_ ever again yoi."

He meant every word.

* * *

**Bochica- A giant from South America that aided the people of Chibcha and Muyscaya of Colombia. It's said that Bochica supported the sky so it wouldn't fall on humans, and that earthquakes are caused by Bochica when he's bored and wants to change positions of the sky. In this this story, it's a race of rare giants. Whitebeard is a Bochica.**

**Gwyligi- A type of 'black dog'. Black dogs are mythological beasts that are said to roam the british islands. Generally they either lead people to their deaths, signal someone's about to die, or outright kill them. Gwyligi are found in Wales, by the way. These black dogs can paralyze their prey with their gaze, and stalks them through the woods but does not always attack. Ligi is a Gwyligi.**

**Sekhmet- Egyptian goddess of war/healing/magic. Have to love Egyptians and their ability to multitask, right? She's traditionally the daughter of Ra, and a lion-headed Goddess. For the sake of this story, it's a race of mythos. Sekhmet are very good at healing other mythos, but they hold a deep grudge against humans. The healer Leigh is a Sekhmet.**

**Tiger- Another animal that shows up a lot in asian mythology. There's the hindu belief that the tiger is sacred vehicle of the Durga, the warrior goddess. And a symbol of power of the Lord Ayyappa. There are also many other stories of course, some including were-tigers. The Chinese Zodiac is also another big one. I even found tiger myths in the Americas, Britain, and a few other odd places. So, you guessed it, tiger mythos have their own clan. Thatch is a tiger.**

**Turtle- Turtles show up a lot world wide in mythology. Some myths say the world rides on the back of a turtle (Native American, for example). Some say turtles are helpful, some not-so much. Most agree they're slow. They were thought of as a creature that unites heaven and earth in more than one religion. There's quite a few stories in Asia about turtles, too. So they get their own mythos clan in this story. Izo is a turtle.**

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**I'm the one who proof-reads and uploads the story (Anjelle) and while I was doing it...**

**Anjelle: I got to the part where Ace is trying to wake Lu and for some reason it made me really depressed and I pictured Thatch and Marco doing a mercy killing and Ace trying to wake up his dead little brother ._.**

**Bedlam: Awwwww gods that's sad. Dammmmnnnnnn.**

**Anjelle: Right?!**

**Bedlam: And then I think they'd have to kill Ace first.**

**Anjelle: And then Ace is "falling asleep" still shaking his little brother as he dies and collapses on top of the other.**

**Bedlam: But then LUFFY!**

**Anjelle: RIGHT!**

**Bedlam: And OMG**

**Anjelle: IT DOESN'T WORK**

**Bedlam: The drug killing them does...but the mercy killing doesn't. OMG we're horrible. Horrible people. Brilliant, but horrible**

**Anjelle: We need to commit sepuku**

**Bedlamwolf: The story would have been a lot shorter if we killed the kids in chapter 2**

**Anjelle: yeah...BUT NO.**

**Anjelle: ...We had so many chances, too. Ligi, falling out of the tree, the syrup, Marco's mercy killing... That's impressive for one chapter.**

**To our lovelies~**

**key46812: (B) Did you hear that? We have a fangirl! (A) HUZZAH!**

**Reddiamond29: (B) You asked for it….though don't expect chapters to be this long again. (A) Yeah I'm seriously wondering how that happened...**

**kickassdani: (B) And we almost make someone faint. Very pleased with us right now. Anjelle, you get to answer the question. (A) *Sigh* Leaving me all the hard work... Humans don't have any special powers in this universe. They're just like us, very boring. And Teach was just being his usual, bastardly self :P I'm happy you're excited for the fic, we are too XD**

**cirmos98: (B) I would recommend not reading it in class. People always seem to read my stories at the worst places...But awkward looks can be fun, right? You can convert more people to the fandom! (A) I don't think you CAN read a chapter this long in class... Not while still paying attention, at least. Hehe I'm glad you think it's worth the awkward situations XD**

**bloodytears87: (B) I hope it is, we've put a lot of work into it. (A) Yeah, if it's not at least interesting I'm going to cry T_T**

**silent canary: (B) *Reads your thoughts on our characterization and is flattered* I'm also wondering if maybe you were listening in maybe….because while you weren't exactly spot on, you're deductions were close in a few spots. As for how young they are….very. (A) NEVER APOLOGISE FOR LONG REVIEWS. I love them *^* And I love to see people actually analysing our story. I mean I love the short ones too but seeing someone take the time to go into detail is really flattering! Oi! Bedlam! Hush up! I know you're new to this, but rule #1 about publicly replying to reviews is to ALWAYS BE VAGUE. Remember that e_e**

**CloudOf9: (B) Soundeffects. My work here is done. (A) Same *puts on sunglasses***

**Son Goshen: (B) Hate on trolls, please. Teach is a horrible creature. Well, here's the next chapter. It should be long enough to keep you busy for a while, right? (A) It better be. At this rate we'll be writing chapters that are 40,000 words long. Yeah, I like fantasy stories that take place in the past. Fun fact: when we first started talking about this story, Bedlam imagined it in a more modern setting :P And the kids weren't kids, right? They were young adults. Things changed. Luhfi is adorable! I like their new names, thank you :P The WILL be using the canon names soon, though. But these names aren't going to disappear; they'll be used in different ways. You'll see what I mean. I love Marco in this story XD I love when his instincts kick in, like with the nest. But I really love Thatch, too, especially this chapter and the next. And I love Ace 'n Lu, of course. They'll be getting a more vocal role as time goes on. No (sick, warped) pun intended. *cough* You're so sweet QAQ Well now you can read til your heart's content! OR until now. When you're reading this. This is the end. **

**PhantoMNiGHT321: (B) Why thank you. Hope you still feel that way after chapter 2. (A) Glad you like~ ...Hope you still do... *hides***

**Guest: (B) Here's the next part! (A) 'Tis continued!**

**uchiha-sakura193: (B) Western. Actually, There's this really cute picture that Anj- NM that's a spoiler. (A) GODDAMN IT BEDLAM I SAID QUIET. You were about to spoil the thing. I don't like that. But yeah, they're western.**

**Leite Destiny: (B) Well, we spend a lot of time spitballing ideas and writing snippits that just get dumped into a document. The thing is massive right now. It helps to really plan ahead. You'll see that some of your questions about mythos were answered in this chapter, and some others will be answered as we go along. So I won't say anything myself~ But the language barrier was a lot of fun to come up with, even if it can make writing some parts tough. Glad you liked the explanation of the mythos! Anjelle had to remind me to put that in. (A) Yes, yes I did. But yeah, the first day when Bedlam had the dream and started telling me about it we just kept going on and building upon each other's ideas until we had a plot. And it's going to be a loooong story. I'm thinking more than a year, but I'm not good at guessing these things XD The language barrier is important for several reasons and it's actually going to be pretty useful. And it's fun XD Don't listen to Bedlam, it's not hard to write (at least not to me who's in a German class and has a teacher who likes to make us feel completely lost). Nope, no difference between mortal and hu-well, a BIT of a difference. There are mortal mythos, for example. But humans ARE mortal so... yeah. Mythos aren't gods, they're literally mythical creatures. There ARE some god mythos in it, though. (No capital XD) Our take: if they didn't learn it, they don't know it. There's... tension between the mythos and humans. A lot of tension. And prejudice. And segregation... it's bad. But not everyone is horrible! I swear! Look at Thatch! And Izo! And Marco's not HORRIBLE, he at least knows to separate his opinions of the race from the kids... mostly. Not so great future... ahahaha... yeah, that about sums up the chapter... *cough* I'm happy to have your support! Garp and Dragon will be in the story more, but that's all I can say. In fact, a lot of characters from chapter 1 will be returning.**

**Fairy of the Friz: (B) I accept cool kind of different! Anjelle came up with the "it's a girl" thing. I almost died laughing myself. (A) Because he's actually wearing girl clothes! Or, well, he SORT OF is. We based his clothes off of the female hanfu and then altered it to match. We'll probably explain it fully later in the story, and I'm working on concept art for the fic as well :D They do not understand each other, if that's what you're wondering, and they're NOT going to understand one another through some magical intervention. You'll see :P**

**TheAnalei: (B) You're right, it's very out of character for a mythos, especially MARCO of all of them! I hope you continue to enjoy it. (A) As you can see, aside from the few in the scene, Marco's family was NOT happy. Blame them for Ace 'n Lu having to suffer so long. Or Bedlam. Blame her too.**

**Blueh: (B) Un….I plead the fifth on it getting better for them in this chapter. BUT! It was for plot! So don't kill us, because we started chapter 3, remember. And things do get better. (A) It was all her. I'm innocent, INNOCENT! Hey, he didn't KILL them. I'd say that's progre- *reads last scene* ...What?! He DIDN'T! *cough***

**Silver Demon Sword: (B) Love that you're so excited about this! It really gets me pumped to write when you all are so excited about this project, and seeing reviews that TELL us this makes my day. So, keep them coming! (A) I'm tempted to work on chapter 3 XD But there are other stories that need tending to so I'll work on those instead~ **

**Bard of Chaos: (B) Good, Anjelle was worried about that. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, too. (A) Still worried about that, since other people said they could apparently tell...**

**Aerle: (B) Ah, well, as Marco says in this chapter, higher mythos have the ability to shift forms. So some look more human. We were deliberately vague. Sorry about that. As for the explanations, since Anjelle had to remind me the first time and people found them useful, I'm going to keep putting them in. XD (A) Basically most mythos have the ability to look at least somewhat "human" (they would argue that humans look like THEM but...) and the more powerful (and dangerous) they are, the more "human" their other form appears. Naturally even though Lu and Ace thought he was safe because he looks like them, that means that he's not. Generally when in public the mythos take the human-like form. We'll explain that more in the future. And yes, it's complicated XD Very much slow. If you know us, you'll know that we prefer complex stories. The simple ones can be fun, but where's the MYSTERY, you know? NO. I WILL WORRY. I WILL WORRY UNTIL THERE IS NO REASON TO WORRY.**

**SkittlesTheUnicorn: (B) Aww you flatter us! (A) Hope we don't let you down~ **

**teengens: (B) Spread the word! I keep saying once word gets out this is going to take off. Marco has reasons for being the way he is. As for Whitebeard, well… I look forward to him finally meeting the kids, myself. (A) It's only elaborate because we have no lives *cough* To be fair, like Bedlam said, Marco has his reasons. The prejudice has a source. Considering that, Marco's actually being EXTREMELY kind to the kids. **

**Frostheart D. Blaize: (B) Teach is the ugliest troll ever! Yep, they speak totally different languages. (A) Yep, pretty much.**

**Nugni: (B) *Reminds herself to thank Anjelle for ordering the explanation* I forget sometimes that other people don't know the same random stuff that I do. (A) I accept your words of gratitude, Bedlam :P Of course we're continuing! A little too much considering this chapter length... You're very welcome~~**

**Justa Little Puppy: (B) We only make it look easy because you're seeing it after we've gone over it again and again...and again. Seriously, I can't tell you how long each chapter takes us to plot, let alone write. But it helps a lot to work with a writer you respect and who's as excited as you are. I think that shows in the story. (A) I'm the one who gets stuck proof-reading the whole thing at the end :,D This chapter was a killer. I'm glad you think it's worth it, though! It's NOT easy. The easy part is figuring out random plot stuff. The hard part is plotting it COHERENTLY. Not so easy. **

**Ghanathesaiyan4: (B) It flatters me that you check every day! Here's your update, and I hope it continues to live up to it's high expectations. (A) Hope you don't hate us for beating the kids :,D IT WAS NECESSARY BECAUSE PLOT. **

**Nimphy-Ryuu-chan: (B) Generally, everyone you meet is going to be a mythos of some sort from here on out. And yes, Atche and Luhfi are adorable! Here's your next chapter! (A) Of course we'll continue! This story is like our crack! ...Speaking of crack, should probably so some work on Divide... Been a while. **

**caring16: (B) Here's more! Poor Ace (Atche) and Luffy(Luhfi) can't catch a break yet though, huh? (A) Again... I blame Bedlam. Ahem.**

**;_; That's the most reviews I (Anjelle) have ever gotten for a first chapter. Thank you guys so much and I hope you'll continue to support us as we write this ridiculously long and complex story!**

***Chapter quote by Seneca**

**Adieu~**


	3. The Beginning of Always

**Chapter Title (it was too long): "Remember Tonight, For it is the Beginning of Always."**

**Bedlam: Bedlam to start you out with the intro to chapter 3. We held off on this one because of reasons. But yes, it's been done for a bit. We're on to 4, 5 and 6 now. This one isn't as long as 2...and really, why must everyone hate on Ligi? I kid I kid. I hate the guy, too. He was created for you all to hate, so I think we did a good job there. Once again 3 was a lot of fun to work on, as are the next bunch. We're trying to be better and not let them run away from us, but it's hard. So much happens, and sometimes we have to bump things to other chapters for flow. Anyway. That's all I have, other than singing Anj's praises for her lineart she's been posting and the stories she's still cranking out. I've been working on mine but not posting….**

**Anjelle: A bit? It's been done since like a day or two after we posted 2 XD But yes, I made the cruddy lineart that is our cover. Was hoping to have it coloured before the update but... Well, there's always next time. You can see the full-sized version on my tumblr. I'll be sure to post links on our profile.**

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Atche was warm. Not overly warm, like his hammock would get sometimes when Luhfi'd climb in with him. He'd never admit it out loud, but he loved it when his baby brother spent the night in bed with him, even if Grandpa said he was too old for stuff like that. He hugged Luhfi closer, burying his nose in hair that smelled of milled grains. Mama said they didn't have to listen to the old goat inside the hut if they didn't want to, anyway.

"M'ungry, Atche..." Luhfi muttered sleepily into his chest, reminding Atche that he was hungry, too. He wondered when Mama was going to wake them for breakfa—_Mama_…He bit back a sob. All he had left of Mama were vague memories. Love and _acceptance_, something that they both missed, even if his little brother didn't understand why. Waking brought back the harsh reality that they'd never have any hope of finding what they craved ever again. If Luhfi hadn't stirred, waking sluggishly, Atche might not have moved and just let those monsters do what they would with him. But Luhfi needed him. His little brother was all he had left and he just couldn't give up.

Atche was shocked when he opened his eyes not to the darkened room that they'd been kept in. Even more surprising was that he was still _warm_, he and his brother curled up on some sort of pad that felt soft as moss when compared to the sack they'd huddled on the last few days. He let his eyes dart around as he sat up, taking in the large window that let in plenty of light as his heart pounded. There wasn't much to the room, just whatever they were on and a heavy-looking small table with four chairs. The strange, smiling, human-looking monster from before was there, sitting, just watching them. Both brothers returned his gaze tight-lipped as they waited for him to make the first move.

"_I was wondering how long you two were going to sleep,_" the man spoke, his tone as light and open as the smile on his face. Atche wasn't going to let that fool him. For all he knew he was _politely_ talking about killing them. He'd already proven himself untrustworthy twice. First he'd left them with that horrible monster, and then he'd _tricked_ them with that bread.

Well, two could play at that game, even if he couldn't back up his words. "I want to gouge out your eyes with a seashell." Luhfi blinked up at him from the protective circle of his arms in shock for a second before he started to giggle. Atche grinned; at least he could make his little brother laugh.

"_Good to see you're in such a good mood. Was worried there for a bit that bastard had... Never mind that, though. I bet you two are starving, huh?"_ The man rambled in his nonsensical language, unsealing a bowl that Atche hadn't noticed at first. His stomach rumbled loudly and he prayed to the gods that had abandoned them that this one wouldn't be so cruel as to make them _watch_ while it ate. He didn't think he could take it from something that looked a lot like the traders that used to stop by town. "Hungry, yes?"

He met the man's eyes for less than a second, untrusting even as he watched as a smaller bowl of whatever smelled so good was ladled out. His mouth was watering. Finally he nodded.

_"Of course you are. Poor things. Come on then."_ The small bowl was held out, but still he wouldn't move, wouldn't let go of Luhfi. Last time he had been weak and look what had happened; he had to be stronger. Luhfi, however, had other ideas. His little brother squirmed free and ran up to the table, a wide smile on his face as he clambered onto a chair. Atche was torn between pride and worry when his brother didn't take the bowl. The young boy looked at it with such heartbreaking longing that he finally gave in with a scowl and sat at the table himself. Luhfi beamed at him, having gotten his way as usual. "_There now, was that so hard? _Hungry?"

"Yes," he bit out, "but I'm not going to fall for the same trick twice. You did something to it." He shoved the bowl back towards the monster even though all he really wanted to do was take it. It smelled even more amazing up close.

The smile faltered, "_Come on, cub! I know you're hungry. Is this about before? I had to do it!_" and the bowl was once again nudged towards the two brothers. He just glared at it pointedly then at the man's chest, feeling his palms start to sweat even at this small act of defiance. But it had to be done; he couldn't risk losing Luhfi to whatever sick game the man was playing. Finally the man sighed. "_Fine. Alright, you win. It was a dirty trick. And that bastard said you were stupid... Look? See?_" Picking up the bowl the man took a drink from it before placing it back in the table, even going so far as to open his mouth to show the skeptical youth the liquid inside before swallowing. "_It's safe this time, I swear it."_

Either the monster was immune to whatever was in the soup, or it really was safe. Taking a cautious sip of the brownish liquid, he didn't _think_ there was anything in it that could be dangerous to his brother, but he wasn't_ sure_. It didn't taste like anything he was familiar with. Looking at the younger child's hopeful face and the way his cheekbones were showing, he knew there wasn't much of a choice. "Slowly, Lu. Don't spill."

"But Atche..." Luhfi whimpered, obviously upset about him not eating.

"I'll be fine, Lu."

"_Hey. No. Cub, you don't need to do that. Look; there's some for the both of you." _A second bowl was practically shoved in his hand. "Eat?" Despite it sounding like a question the look the man was giving him told Atche it wasn't. He lifted the bowl to his lips, willing to not challenge the redheaded man on it.

"YAY! Now you have some, too!" His brother grinned, "Remember. Slowly. Because it might be hot, right?"

Well, the liquid was warm, definitely not hot. It was more that he didn't want his brother to miss out on any of the food. Who knew when they'd get more? But Luhfi didn't need to know that. "Right. You don't want to burn your tongue."

It was some sort of thick broth, almost a soup. There were no pieces of meat or vegetables in it, but it tasted like there should be. Not that he could identify what kinds. Maybe onion, but he wasn't sure. Whatever was in it was making his stomach rumble _more_ even as he slowly drank it down. Atche snorted, annoyed with his stomach for deciding that it was even more hungry than before as he finished his bowl. Not a single drop remained, and glancing over he saw his brother licking the inside of his.

When Luhfi looked up, a small smudge of grease on his nose, he held out the bowl to the man who'd fed them. "I'm still hungry! I want more!"

"_Well, I bet I can guess what you're saying, little cub._" The redhead laughed. "No."

"YES!" Luhfi shouted back, shoving the bowl forward with a frown. "Hungry!"

A headshake was his only answer, earning a full-blown pout. Atche had expected it, though. The container he'd brought in was empty. Idiot probably thought he'd brought more than enough and couldn't understand why his little brother wasn't happy with what he'd gotten. _"I'm sorry. I know you're still hungry, but if you eat too much you're going to make yourself sick."_

"I'm still hungry…" His brother's dark brown eyes watered slightly and Atche sighed, gathering the younger boy into his lap.

"It'll be alright, Lu." It had become a motto, one they both clung to.

Luhfi shifted around, settling in his lap to face the strange man. He figured his brother was giving him his best dirty look. Luhfi was always doing that when he didn't get his way. At least he wasn't giving it to his big brother this time. Glancing across the table, the man had a funny expression on his face. His eyebrows were scrunched together and his mouth was open slightly._ Lu strikes again._ Atche ducked so the man wouldn't see his smirk and rested his forehead against the back of Luhfi's head. He blinked, confused as he stared at the back of his brother's neck and down his shirt. The ugly metal collar that had sat there choking his brother was gone. A dark span of skin marked the spot it had sat. Atche sat up, pushing Luhfi's head forward slightly as he tugged the back of his brother's shirt towards his own chest, earning a surprised yelp from his brother. Raw red patches of skin marred the base of the young boy's neck where the collar had chafed. Ace touched a finger to one; it came away covered in a clear salve which he wiped off on Luhfi's shirt. He frowned. The shirt was definitely not the same one his brother had been wearing earlier; that one had been little more than rags, dirty and threadbare on top of being ill-fitting. This one didn't fit him much better, but it was a nice clean red, soft, too.

Luhfi squirmed, "Atche, what are you doing?"

"Hold still, will you?" He went back to his investigation. It looked like there were bandages under the shirt. He'd have to lift the bottom of it to be sure.

"_Noticed, have you? Well, I don't know if I should be worried it took you so long or not._" Yes, definitely bandages. They _looked_ like they were on right, but Atche had to admit that he didn't know the first thing about how to put one on.

"Atche…."

"How do you feel, Lu?"

"Hungry."

"Other than that. Do you hurt?"

"_What are you two talking about, I wonder?_" Luhfi hummed for a few moments, thinking about it.

"Not really. I feel sort of tingly. And my neck doesn't hurt as much anymore!" His brother turned and Atche quickly reached out to prevent him from sliding off his lap. Luhfi's gaze immediately went to his own neck, and he tentatively touched it, half afraid he'd feel unforgiving metal. Instead he felt flesh, and his brother's eyes shone with joy. "Atche!" Arms wrapped around his neck and he returned the gesture, hugging his brother close.

"_I wonder if Marco would mind if I take a little trip into town later? I'm feeling like having dog tonight. What do you think?_" Grey eyes wet with unshed tears, Atche looked over at the man. "_Don't mind me, cub. Just talking to myself_." The weird man waved. "_I think I'm going either way, though_."

"Got no clue what you're talking about, mister…" he grumbled half to himself as he took a good look at the clothes he was wearing. Much like his little brother's they were better than before and he had no recollection of where they came from. Not even a half-remembered dream, which when coupled with the fact that he was pretty sure he was covered in bandages… _One way to find out_. He pulled his own shirt away from his chest. Just as he'd thought, bandages tightly pressed against his ribs and stomach, but he didn't really notice. There really was a slight tingly feeling, and when Atche ran a hand over the swaths of fabric they were warmer than he thought just his body heat would make them. He glowered at the man on the other side of the table. "When did you do this? How?" Even as he asked he knew the answer._ While we were drugged, they must have—_his heart began to race at the thought of being so completely at their mercy.

"_What's wrong? Are the bandages too tight?_"

"WHY?! Why are you doing this—_any_ of this—to us?" He didn't understand why. The only one who had been even halfway nice to them before was that blond guy. That had ended badly, with them being passed off to that... that _thing_ like they were nothing. This had to be a trick or something. Because he remembered the blond guy had been in the room too, and that couldn't be a good thing. Not when they'd seen what he _really_ was.

_"You must really not trust me much."_ The strange man let out a sigh, shaking his head slightly as he leaned back in his chair. "_Not that can I blame you. I'm surprised you haven't bolted for the do-o-oor—"_ He flexed his arms towards the ceiling and Atche thought he saw strange markings peeking out from under the long, white sleeves. He immediately forgot about them when the man yawned, though. He had sharp teeth. _Very sharp teeth_, with large fang-like ones on the sides. Atche clutched his brother to his chest convulsively and leapt to his feet. "_—yet. And there you go."_

He was across the room in seconds, yanking on the door's handle. Panic threatened to overwhelm him when it didn't budge at all, and he couldn't help the strangled whimper that escaped him as he spun, back pressed against the unyielding wood. The monster was still sitting there, watching them with sad-looking eyes. He'd probably just been fattening them up, and any second now he was going to attack. But Atche wasn't going to make it easy for him. Oh no. He looked around the room for an escape route, ignoring the way his stomach rolled unpleasantly.

"_Please don't get sick, cub. Take it easy. I knew I should have started you out on clear broth. What was I thinking?!" _He flinched, eyes shooting back to the man at the table at the sound before scooting around the walls of the room. He'd try the window. "_You've been giving the little one what little scraps that bastard gave you, haven't you? Damn it, I'm such an idiot."_ The walls were smooth stone? of some sort. There was no chance of pulling off something to use as a weapon.

The window glass was very clear, offering the boys an unobstructed view of what seemed to be a garden. He pressed against the cool pane, leaving a handprint on the thick and heavy surface as he tried to get it to budge. "Look, Atche! A bird!" Luhfi exclaimed, quickly losing focus in favor of the brightly colored bird that landed on the opposite side of the sill. He hardly spared it a glance, trying to wedge his fingers between the frame and the sill.

"_Marco's... he means well. He didn't think that bastard would—well, he feels bad. That's why I'm here: to fix you guys up for him!_" Atche glanced over his shoulder as he tried again to pry the window open at the slightly raised voice and saw the fanged man still sitting there, chin resting against his hand. He was grinning at them, or at least their general direction, obviously amused. "_Hey, don't hurt yourself, cub._"

"Ouch!" His fingers slipped, and he barked his knuckles on the heavy woodwork.

"_I warned you. Anyway. Marco's a good guy. He's just… lonely. Yeah, lonely."_ Looking at the window again he decided the only spot he might have luck opening it was all the way at the top, and he doubted it was wide enough for even Luhfi to fit. Not like they could reach, anyway. There really wasn't much else in the room. Just the table where the weird monster—why hadn't he attacked them yet?—was sitting. "_Don't tell him this, but I think you'll be good for him. Not like you have any clue what I'm talking about anyway, right?_"

That thing they'd been sleeping on! Maybe there was something there he could use to protect his little brother. He grabbed his brother's wrist and dragged him away from the window. Luhfi made a noise of protest; apparently the bird had still been there. This was more important, though. It was some sort of large, raised cushion. Atche was pretty sure that it was something called a 'bed', but only one person in the village used a 'bed' and it looked nothing like this. That bed had been a thin pad held off the ground by a wooden frame and supported by tight ropes. He cocked his head to the side as he walked around it, confused. This had no frame he could see. It was large and round—mostly round, it'd been shoved up against the wall and that side was flat.

"_Do you like it? You seem confused._" Luhfi'd already pulled himself onto the—well, he was just going to call it a bed and be done with it—and his little brother's weight caused it to sink down ever so slightly. Cautiously he climbed on as well. It was definitely soft and firm, but with much more give than the one in the village. He remembered sneaking into the house with Lu and jumping up and down on it once. They'd gotten in trouble, but the man had always been mad at them anyway so it didn't matter when they'd had so much fun.

Lu half turned, pulling on a blanket that had been part of a pile on the bed. "Atche! Look! There's a whole bunch, and lots of pillows too!"

"Really?" It was hard to walk on the insanely large bed. Finally he gave up and crawled over to his brother. Sure enough there was an impressive amount of blankets and pillows. Nibbling his lower lip thoughtfully, he started going through them. They could be lucky and one of the pillows would be hard enough to maybe use as a weapon, though most of the blankets looked well worn.

"_I'm not exactly familiar with human sleeping habits, so I wasn't sure if you cubs would feel better nesting or denning. So Marco and I made sure to get lots of nice clean bedding so you could do either. Or both._" Atche ran his hand along a particularly soft blanket and glanced over at the man _still_ just sitting at the table talking nonsense. Even if it was obviously not a new blanket, it was the softest one he'd ever felt. Completely useless as a potential weapon… but he loved it. He moved it to the side and hoped his little brother wouldn't use it for the fort he was busy making out of everything else. He let him; nothing in the pile was useful to defend themselves with and it was keeping his brother happy.

For his part he just flopped down with a huff and stared at the strange man. _He should have done something by now_. He was annoyed that the guy hadn't tried anything, in fact. Annoyed and quickly growing frustrated. There was nothing to _do_ in this room, and they couldn't get out. By now that dog-like guy would have long switched from shouting at them to either throwing things or beating them. Atche had hated him, but he'd been predictable, and the brothers understood predictable. (He refused to think about where he was and when he was coming back.) This was just too much _new_, and _new_ ended badly. Plus, he was hungry again.

The redhead sat straighter in his chair and reached down the front of his shirt, "_Well, I guess it's been long enough. You've both managed to keep down lunch, and I'm sure you're hungry, cub._" He pulled out a cloth bag and opened it up. Atche watched in shock as he picked out a thin wafer-looking thing from the bag. _"Mmmmm, doesn't THIS look good?_" The man didn't even look at him as he popped it in his mouth, making sounds of obvious enjoyment. Atche felt his jaw drop when the man did it _again_.

"I'm hungry, Atche," Luhfi whined, pressing against his side as the young child watched the man tease them.

"_Mmmm. So goood!"_ Another wafer was eaten, and this time the man glanced right at them. _"I know you're hungry. Am I going to have to eat this whole bag myself before you get up the nerve to come over here, little cubs?_" He ate another, _"It's a good thing I have two bags then, I guess._"

Atche looked down at his precious little brother who was practically drooling and then back at the man. The worst was that all this man seemed willing to do to them was tell them 'no'. So it wasn't likely he was going to _hurt_ them, not like the dog-guy. Even that drugged bread hadn't ended _badly_, really. The collars were off, at least. That's what he told himself when he slid off the bed and walked over to the table. It was the hard to do, and he couldn't bring himself to look at the redhead until he had settled his brother in a seat and climbed onto one himself.

When he did, the man was grinning without his fangs showing, holding out one of the small wafers. "_Good Cub. Come on now, take it…"_

Atche couldn't believe that the man was just going to share the food. He wasn't going to try and get them to talk or anything. He looked at the golden-yellow circle that the creature seemed to enjoy so much and wondered what it was exactly. It was held delicately between two claws, and he hesitated. The monster held completely still as the boy looked at his hand from all angles. When he glanced up, he swore that the other wasn't even breathing. Brown eyes met his and for the first time Atche didn't look away immediately. He didn't see disgust or even amusement. Just kindness and honesty. He was so shocked he reached out for the food before he'd realised it. It was slightly sticky in his hands, but not too bad. Handing it to Luhfi he licked his fingers. _Honey?_

"It's good! Really good!" his brother told him, smiling happily and he felt his lip twitch into a small smile. He was happy, too, and relieved for some reason.

The redhead ate another wafer himself, watching the two of them, before holding one out towards the brothers. "_Let's try this again._" And Atche took it readily before giving it to his brother. "_Good."_

Another one was held out and Atche reached for it, but Luhfi was there first. His tiny hands were dwarfed by the man's but he still held the man in place while he tugged the wafer free. He was so proud of himself when he held it out to his big brother that Atche had to remember to take it and not just hug him. It was sweet, but not overly sweet, and not at all as chewy as he was expecting. Atche decided it was good as he took another one for himself.

"_This is a kind of sweet bread, you know. It's a mythos staple, actually. Made out of sesame seeds that are ground into flour, eggs, butter, milk, vanilla, some spices and of course honey. It's very good for you._" The man pulled out another one of the sweets.

"Yes?" Luffy asked.

"Yes." He handed it over. _"So where you think you're getting a treat, you're not, not really. I made a ton of these, too._"

Atche barely waited until the next one was out of the bag before he had his hand out, his mouth watering. "Yes?"

"Yes._ Positive reinforcement's the way to go._" The redhead passed out two more before eating one himself, talking the whole time. _"Plus, you probably think you're getting one over on me, too._" Luhfi's hand shot out for the next one, the child bouncing in his seat. "_Let's see how this works… can't keep calling you 'cubs' or 'humans' all the time, right?_" He pointed to himself and said clearly, "THATCH," while looking directly at both of them. "THATCH," he repeated before eating the sweet.

Atche blinked in surprise, it clicking immediately what the other was trying to do. He leaned forward as the man reached into the bag sitting on the table and pulled out a treat and watched as the clawed finger pointed at his younger brother. It would be interesting to see what Luhfi did. The young child blinked at him before grinning widely and pointing at himself, "Thatch!"

Atche laughed out loud at that. Thatch, because he now had a _name_ for the man, handed over the treat with a shake of his head. But he was smiling, and Atche thought he might have expected something like that. "_I'm glad you think this is funny_._ Let's see how you do, though. You're the older one, right? Set a good example_." Once again Thatch reached into the bag and pulled out a sweet. Atche watched his lips carefully as he spoke. "THATCH." He ate the treat, pulled out another and pointed to Atche.

He nudged his little brother so that he was paying attention first and then pointed to the man who'd been giving them treats, keeping eye contact with his brother. "Thatch." He saw realization _finally_ dawn on Luhfi, and smiled, turning his attention to the man. He pointed at his brother and made sure to speak slowly "LUHFI," and then himself, "ATCHE".

Thatch's whole body just seemed to relax a little bit, and he couldn't figure out why. But as the man handed over the sweet he decided it didn't matter. There was something about sharing—_being asked for—_their names, for the first time since everything had happened, that felt good. His little brother sat there swinging his legs back and forth sing-songing, "Thatch-Thatch-Thatch!" so he could tell even Lu felt the same way.

"_Alright, let's see if I got this._" A sweet was held out, and the man pointed to Atche. "Ath_ and_ Luvi?"

"No." Luhfi giggled, taking the treat out of his hand. "Atche and Luhfi!"

"_I'm not hearing it... Okay,_ Acky _and_ Lofie?_ Is that right? It sounds the same to me as what you're saying…_"

Atche took the treat and handed it to his brother who ate it happily. "No."

"_This isn't working at all._" Thatch shook his head, a small smile on his face at his attempts. Atche didn't think it was that funny. Their names weren't _that_ hard. _"How about _Lu _and_ Ach?" Thatch was still smiling, offering a sweet. Atche saw red—_no one_ had the right to call them that. The only people allowed to shorten your name like that were supposed to be your family, and he wasn't even _human_.

He snatched the treat and threw it as hard as he could at Thatch's face, "How _dare _you?!"

"_What? Wha—"_

"You're not family! You don't get to call us that, ever! No one does! NO!" he screamed.

His little brother tugged on his sleeve and he turned his attention to Luhfi. The boy's lower lip was quivering slightly and Atche immediately deflated, pulling the younger child into his lap. It had been a long, long time since anyone but him had called Luhfi 'Lu'. "You can't just do that, alright? Only family gets to shorten your name like that," he explained even though he knew Thatch wouldn't understand. "It's rude." Not to mention it hurt, being reminded of how alone they were. Luhfi sniffled wetly into his chest, and he rocked his baby brother in his arms, blinking his eyes furiously. The redhead was staring at him with this shocked expression, and he didn't have time to worry about whatever he thought. If he wanted to punish him for throwing the sweet or yelling, Atche would worry about it later. Right now Luhfi needed him to be his big brother and make everything all better. "It's alright Lu," he muttered, "I'm here for you; I won't leave you."

"M-mama…. I w-want Mama," Luhfi wailed, big, fat tears running down his cheeks and into the fabric of Atche's shirt . "I wa-wanna go home!"

Atche glared at Thatch as the redhead stumbled back from the table, apparently taken by complete surprise by the sight of Luhfi's tears. "This is your fault, you know."

Thatch had stood so fast he'd knocked his chair over, but he didn't seem to notice at all. Instead he was just looking at them. Atche did his best to ignore him standing there. "_What did I do? Gods, you must think I'm some kind of monster._" It was hard to ignore him with the way he was talking under his breath, though. _"You poor things; what could have happened to you…"_ He spun on his heel and continued to mutter, but so low it was drown out by Luhfi's hiccupping cries.

He watched as the man paced, trying to comfort his brother. There was a big part of him that was _glad_ to see him so upset over Luhfi's tears. He deserved it, reminding them of what they had lost. _Acting like he's family. Like he could replace Mama._ There was this other, smaller part that felt bad—that kind of liked the monster. For a big, bad, scary creature, he and his little brother already had him pretty much figured out. He was a pushover. After all, they'd managed to get more food out of the man after he'd said 'no' before.

Thatch stopped right next to his chair and looked down at them, running his hands through his hair. He seemed to have come to sort of a decision, because he dropped in front of them and lightly tapped his brother on the shoulder. When Luhfi pulled his face out from Atche's shirt, his eyes were red.

The man took a deep breath before looking directly at his little brother. "Lu-ffy?" He held up a handful of sweets, his expression hopeful. _"Please, cub. I didn't mean to make you cry. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I know I can't make it all better for you two, but I'm going to try. Marco, too. Please, you just need to take this first step._"

His brother thought about it for a second. Sniffling, he looked up at him, silently asking what he should do. Atche just shrugged. He was just as confused as his little brother. Luhfi sucked his lips, giving Thatch a hard look. The moment felt like it stretched on forever before the child spoke, "Luffy!" He pointed at himself and repeated the name before taking the sweets.

_"Oh thank the gods, little cub._ Luffy." Thatch offered a shaky smile, _"I'll be sure to remember that."_ He looked at Atche, eyebrows raised.

"Atche." If the man insisted on re-naming them, _he_ wasn't going to be the one to pick out his new name. 'Atche' was the name his family gave him.

_"…Okay, how about… _A-sce?" He found the sweets offered to him. _"Does that work?_"

_Asce?_ It wasn't bad, but it still wasn't quite right. Atche chewed his lip in thought, wondering why. Then it hit him: the way it was drawn out in the middle reminded him too much of those snake-people. He had to repress a shudder; it just wouldn't do. Maybe if that part was shorter? "Ace?" he muttered before nodding to himself. Looking at his (well he wouldn't call him a _friend, _really. Acquaintance, maybe?) he poked the man in the chest, "Thatch. Luffy. Ace."

"Ace. Luffy. Thatch. _Got it." _Thatch grinned widely, fangs peeking out from under his lip as he handed over the sweets. Yet, for some reason 'Ace' wasn't bothered by them this time. He wondered why that was.

* * *

Had it been a few weeks earlier, Atche would have said that room was mind-numbingly boring. There was nothing to do, nowhere to go and all that mon—all that _Thatch_ really did was speak in a language they didn't understand, occasionally muttering a few broken sentences they _did_ know, and that was only for food. But really, after being stuck for so long—he didn't know _how _long—in that dark, damp room, he couldn't complain. They had light. They had food. And they didn't have to relieve themselves on a bucket in the corner. Thatch rarely even got up out of that seat, never approaching much less hitting them. And with those teeth and claws, Atche knew he could tear them apart in seconds. Maybe he didn't eat humans?

At some point, Atche began assisting Luhfi with the fort he tried to make earlier. They'd worked together, piling the pillows and cushions one atop the other and draping blankets over them—though he kept his favourite hidden behind the bed-like thing they were sitting on.

_"So you prefer denning, huh? I'll be sure to remember that." _He glanced the redhead's way, acknowledging him even though he didn't understand a word he was saying. It seemed only right after the man-beast bandaged them up and fed them. That was more than any of the other monsters ever did. Mama was the last one who was nice to them like that. After so long it was… kind of embarrassing. And he didn't know why.

"No, Lu," he started, removing the pillow his brother had just stacked onto the pile, "you want the small ones on the top. Like this."

"Alright!" The boy beamed at him as he went about correcting the fort that was far less sturdy than it probably should have been on his little brother's side. "Hey, Atche, I'm hungry again."

"You'll have to wait." He saw the boy's pout and smiled, spreading one of the blankets over the pillows that weren't wobbling. "He might want to get rid of us if we eat too much, right?"

The child's face sagged further as he looked to Thatch with sad, broken-hearted eyes, giving a reluctant nod. After what the dog-guy did to them, they couldn't afford to hope for more than they'd already been given. The fact that their aches, their bruises and cuts were given a break from the abuse was already enough to be thankful for. They could heal.

_"What's wrong, little cub? _Luffy?"

Both heads snapped up as Atche recalled the new names they'd been given, all because that man couldn't pronounce them. In truth he wasn't _that_ upset—it was better than him trying to shorten their names—but he wasn't about to just _accept _it. Thatch could call them that all he wanted but Luhfi was still Luhfi and Atche was still Atche. Nothing would take the names their mother gave them away from them.

Luhfi, who'd crawled into the incomplete fort at some point, washed the sadness from his face to blink quizzically at the monster, waiting.

_"Are you hungry again?"_ he asked with a smile, reaching for the bag of treats he had before. Atche could tell it was a question by the intonation but for the life of him he couldn't recognise the words. _"I can't give you much or you'll get sick. Marco should be showing up sooner or later—hopefully sooner since I'm falling asleep. You'll be able to walk all over him with how guilty he feels." _He pulled a sweet from the bag and held it out.

His little brother beamed, hopping out of the fort to steal the wafer from the monster's hand without hesitation. Atche was a little uneasy letting his brother so close, but after how many hours they'd been there without him hurting them he thought that maybe… maybe it would be okay. Maybe Thatch was good.

"More!" Luhfi demanded, holding out a splayed hand.

Thatch laughed as he handed it over. _"Alright, alright, but this is the last one. I'm sure Marco will spoil you rotten once I leave. Bird-brain doesn't know how to say 'no' anymore."_

The boy looked at it, his mouth watering as he broke it in half and turned to his big brother still across the room, grinning at him in that adorable way of his. "You have some too, Atche!"

He was about to get up when the knob started to jiggle. Both boys remained frozen when, for the first time since they woke, the door opened. Eyes widened as a tall blond was revealed on the other side and Luhfi immediately dashed towards his brother, ignoring his injuries as he dove into Atche's chest, an almost instinctual response that developed while under that dog-man's care. Honestly, he wasn't sure the kid even realised who it was; he simply sought safety from the only place he could get it.

Atche saw the blond glance his way with half-lidded eyes and fought to hide his trembling as he remembered the day before, a sea of blue flames engulfing his sibling as he fell from a tree. In all honesty it _terrified_ him, seeing a giant bird grab his brother mid-fall and set him down. He heard the stories—the legends. The old guys in town would always talk about the mythos, about the dangers of them, and as he stared into those bored, blue eyes he remembered something he'd been told, once upon a time: _the more human they look, the more dangerous they are._

That was when it clicked: Suzaku, one of the most feared mythos of all—one of the most powerful.

And it transformed. And it was _him_.

The blond reluctantly looked away from their cowering forms, heading over to the other monster at the table. Thatch didn't seem too surprised by their reactions, a sad smile playing on his lips as he turned to the other.

_"Took you long enough."_

_"I paid Ligi a visit before coming here yoi,"_ the blond started as he lowered himself into a chair. _"He can't hurt them anymore."_

Ace watched as the redhead gaped at the phoenix, distress washing over his features, and he held his brother tighter, closer. He'd protect him if something happened, no matter what.

_"You didn't."_ They shared a look before something feral entered Thatch's eyes. It was just an instance, just a minute flash across his face, but it had the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end. _"And you didn't save me anything? Not even a leg?"_

_"Sorry yoi. Wasn't thinking about that at the time."_

_"That's why we were supposed to go together. Marco, brother, I skipped breakfast for this!"_

_"…Sorry."_

The redhead sighed, glancing at the boys periodically before shrugging his distress off. "_Nah, I don't blame you. I'd have done it myself. What do you plan on telling Dalmatian? Ligi worked for him originally, right?"_

The bird relaxed in much the same way, a tired look on his face as his elbows came to rest against the table. _"He had rabies. He had to be put down. There was nothing we could do yoi."_ He paused, a groan passing his lips. _"I feel sick."_

_"Stomach?"_

_"Yeah. The mutt was rotten yoi."_

Thatch folded his arms. _"That's what you get for not sharing."_

_"Oi…"_

Atche took the laid-back atmosphere as a chance to hide within the mostly-built fort with his brother, glaring at the two from within.

The bird blinked, staring unabashedly their way. Each time he did that it sent chills running up the human's spine. He was sure it was the same for his brother, if the way he huddled near to him was anything to go by. What bothered him most was that the blond kept _moving_! Thatch pretty much remained stationary the whole time they'd been awake aside from a bit of pacing. He wasn't sure how to deal with that.

But he wouldn't let his fear or uncertainty show on his face, making low noises instinctively to ward them off—not that he thought he could actually intimidate them, but he wanted to put on a brave front and after having that metal ring around his neck for so long it just felt natural not to use words. They wouldn't understand him, anyway.

_"He's growling yoi."_

_"He's scared," _Thatch replied, snapping his fingers to get the bird to look his way. _"What did I tell you? No sudden movements, no eye contact. You're freaking them out again!"_

_"I didn't do anything yoi."_

_"Yes, you did!" _Those blue eyes found their way back to the brothers. _"And you're doing it again! Stop that!"_

_"Breathing?"_

_"LOOKING AT THEM!" _The roar held no malice or anger but still had Atche and Luhfi flinching. Earlier he wondered what type of monster he was with those big teeth and long claws but now he'd decided that he didn't want to know. _"Look at the wall or something! Stupid bird…" _Whatever he was saying dropped off into a series of mutters that, even if he knew the language, the boy would find incoherent.

Blue eyes lingered before returning to gaze at the redhead, though Atche caught the almost-glances his way. _"Why is this so easy for you? You're a predatory mythos."_

_"It's called stalking. You let your 'prey' move first."_

_"But I don't want to kill them yoi."_

Thatch dropped his forehead into his palm with a groan, making Atche wish he knew what they were talking about even more. It was obviously about them since the blond—he _was_ Suzaku, wasn't he?—kept looking their way, but that only made him more curious.

He felt his brother shift beside him, turning owlish eyes his way. "They're being weird," he whispered into his sibling's ear, curling up tightly against him.

Atche snorted. "They're monsters. What did you expect?"

"The lady keeps looking at us…"

"It's a guy," he stated as he glanced at the kid before returning to glare.

"But the dr—"

"HE'S NOT WEARING THE DRESS!" He immediately regretted shouting, cupping his hands over his mouth as both of the monsters turned to look their way with confused expressions. Atche couldn't help it, though; every once in a while when they were thrown into that cold, smelly room, his brother had asked when the 'lady' was coming back. He would wonder when 'she' was going to save them, but the elder had given up. That was why it annoyed him so much whenever Luhfi brought up the blond man from before—he didn't want false hope.

Eventually the men deflated and he saw Suzaku's posture sag, as though the tension had been drained from his shoulders. _"They're talking."_

Thatch grinned. _"I told you: we can FIX this, alright? Just trust me."_

The blond nodded hesitantly, which seemed to be the sign Thatch needed to stand from his seat. He edged the bag of treats towards the bird before rummaging through a sac atop the table, retrieving a second. He pulled out all sorts of other things and piled them in front of Suzaku. Atche didn't know what half of it was, but he was curious.

_"Their names are hard to pronounce so just call them _'Ace'_ and_ 'Luffy' _and whatever you do, do NOT shorten them. Bad things happen. Very bad things."_ They _were_ talking about them! It was a little irritating knowing that. _"They like the sweets so you can try using them to teach the cubs your name or something. Don't approach them; let them come to you. No sudden movements, alright? And if you can't think of anything to do then just… read a book or something."_

The blond started sifting through the pile, sniffing things that it seemed even he didn't know about. _"And the rest of this yoi?"_

_"Bandages, salve… just stuff to treat them with if my nap lasts longer than seven hours."_

_"Seven hours isn't a nap."_

_"It is for me! Try not to spook them and you'll be fine. And don't give me that look—it'll be okay. They're just scared. You said so yourself: they're talking. That's a big step."_

Suzaku sighed, nodding to something that the other said, watching as Thatch stepped out of the room. Atche felt the urge to rush after him but repressed it. His mind flashed to a day that seemed so long, long ago, left alone with that _thing_ that… that _hurt_ them—hurt _Luhfi._ And that was just a dog. That wasn't the firebird he heard stories of. It wasn't _Suzaku_. If one dog-man could do all that, what could a phoenix do? How cruel could he be?

As the bird turned its eyes to them, Atche slunk back deeper into the fort, huddling Luffy closer to him. He wouldn't say he was scared—uneasy, maybe, but not scared. Even so, he couldn't help the flashes of memories as they bombarded his mind, of darkness and pain and _so much else._

Suddenly a spark of realisation flashed across the blond man's face and his eyes narrowed. _"Those are your names but… which one's which yoi?"_ He turned to the bag on the table, sticking two clawed fingers inside to retrieve one of the round snacks they'd eaten before.

"Oh yeah!" Luhfi exclaimed, finally remembering the wafer halves he was still holding. He shoved one into his mouth sloppily, crumbs falling to their fortress's floor as he held the other half out for his brother. "Here, Atche! You eat too!"

Honestly, his stomach was turning too much for it to even look appetising. "I'm not hungry," he bit out, looking at the monster but never meeting its eyes, "you eat it."

Luhfi's pout didn't last long as he devoured the sweet whole. He seemed to have relaxed—wasn't as scared as earlier—leaving the elder of the two to watch their very likely enemy as he sniffed the treat, reminding Atche of a wild animal.

Then blue met grey. Atche had to avoid his eyes; the dog-man never liked it when he made eye contact. He would tug hard on their chains, choke them, and the brothers learned quickly that their gaze should never fall above his chest. It was almost instinctive now.

"Ace," he called, looking between them and holding the sweet out between his talons. Realisation washed over Atche as he recalled his new name. Suzaku seemed to notice as his gaze fixed on the elder boy, waiting. _"So that's you, then. Well, come on. You can have it yoi. I'm not like Ligi, I promise."_

He didn't need to understand to know what the bird-man was saying; he wanted Atche to take the sweet. But there was _no way_ he was getting close to that thing, instead ducking further behind pillowed walls. Those partially-lidded eyes opened a bit, something akin to worry on his face as he stayed perfectly still. When he saw that Atche wouldn't budge, he quickly turned to the younger, making the same silent offer. Neither moved.

"…Luffy?" The boy's ears perked up. He stopped gathering the crumbs and remnants of the pastry to look at the monster, his eyes never going above his chest. Suzaku looked frazzled as he urged the kid to take the sweet. _"Please don't be scared. You weren't before. Just… just take it. I won't hurt you."_

Before Atche had a chance to stop him, Luhfi had already sprung up and left the fort, hesitantly inching closer to the treat held out for him. "No, Luhfi! Don't!" Of course the boy didn't listen, taking small, slow strides nearer to the monster, carefully reaching for it. He stopped when his hand was mere centimetres from it, meeting blue eyes for the first time. Atche held his breath. _Don't hurt him. Don't touch him. Please…_

_"Go on."_

Pulling his mouth taut, Luhfi cautiously closed his fingers around the sticky treat, gently taking it from the other, and his big brother breathed a sigh of relief. But then he heard a breath hitch in the bird's throat and his attention was grasped once more. Eyes widened on the gaped mouth of the blond as he reached for his brother. Immediately Atche sprung up, destroying the fort as he dashed towards them. "Don't you_ dare_ hurt him!" But he was too late and a hand of sharp claws was already pressed against his brother's neck. The boy had flinched but never pulled away, leaving Atche to slow to a stop and stare in confusion. He finally brought himself to look the phoenix in the eyes.

It looked like the man was hurting—not the same way they were, not from injury or abuse, but something else. His eyes were fixed on Luhfi's neck, on the purple and greenish skin lining the area where he'd been collared. He ran his fingers lightly over the salve-covered cuts from where the metal chafed and dug through their skin repeatedly, where marks were reopened again and again with every jerk of the chain, every time they were dragged through the halls because their tiny limbs weren't keeping up. Why was he looking at them like that? Why was he pretending to sympathise? He _left them there_! With that thing—with that _monster_! Wasn't that what he wanted? Wasn't he the one who told that dog what to do with them? So why was he upset? How _dare_ he look sad?

…But those thoughts died in his head, never to surface, because that man looked just as broken as they did.

After a stretch of stillness, the man gently tilted Luhfi's chin upwards, careful of the bandages and tender sores as he positioned his head to get a better look. _"…They won't heal. They'll scar."_ His tone was somber, audible only because the room had achieved near-perfect quiet broken only by the sounds of their careful breaths. Suzaku bit his lip. _"…How are you supposed to move on if you have those marks yoi?"_

Atche furrowed his brow. He didn't know the words but there was worry in that voice. And fear. But his baby brother didn't seem to hold the same reserves; he saw him out of the corner of his eye beaming brightly. "See?" he started as he handed half of the honeyed treat for his sibling to take, "I knew she was nice!"

It shot his nerves to hell but he managed to grab the half held out to him, thinking that maybe it was okay. Maybe he could… not _trust_ but… relax around the phoenix? But when he took one more look at the blond he inwardly panicked, noting how distraught he was. Something was wrong. He was upset, but _why_? They were strangers! He shouldn't care about them! So why—

"Does it hurt?" Luhfi's voice cut through the silence, pulling him from his thoughts as he turned owlish eyes to the bird, reaching towards him not enough to touch, but to feel the other's body heat gently caress his skin. His face went from a frown to a smile instantly as he gathered the courage to set his hand down on Suzaku's knee. "Atche says that when I hurt it's okay to cry. You can cry too; I won't tell!"

Atche swallowed. "Lu…" He turned to see that the phoenix looked even more distraught—no, more _shocked_. He couldn't have understood the words, so what brought it on had to be the touch and—

_"…After all that, you can still smile?"_ There was a pause as he took a breath. _"Thank the gods…"_

The way that man was acting bothered the elder brother as he stood awkwardly beside his sibling. Luhfi wanted to cheer him up so Atche did, too. But he wasn't sure how. When Lu looked like that he would take him into his arms, rub his back in soothing circles to help calm him down. But that man hated their touch before. On that day, what seemed like forever-ago, he cringed every time they grasped his hand or robes. He never tried to hide his disgust with them, how he felt about humans. So he couldn't do that—didn't want to make him mad. He began patting his clothes but, of course, he didn't _have_ anything. Except…

Nervously he stepped forward, taking his brother's spot in front of the man. He stared at his chest but even without seeing could _feel_ those eyes on him, making him a nervous wreck. "Stop it. Stop _doing that_." But of course it was futile so he resigned himself to action over words, holding the treat out in front of him for the man to take with furrowed brows. He dared to glance up, just briefly, noting the confusion on the other's face, then the softness—something he hadn't seen in the phoenix before.

When a hand brushed against his own he jumped a little, stiffening as it pushed his arm back towards his chest with a shake of his head.

_"Eat. Hatchlings need their strength." _The tone was calm, soothing, and even though he didn't know what was said the intent was clear. He raised the sweet to his lips, biting into it as the man watched both brothers. _"Worrying about me when you've been—you're… strange for humans yoi._ Luffy."

At the sound of his name Luffy stepped forward, grinning as another of the pastries was placed in his hand. He gobbled it up instantly, standing ready for more.

_"Slowly, boy. _Ace."

It was Atche's turn and before he knew what he was doing, he was pulling the treat from clawed fingers. But before he bit into it he paused and thought, shakily pointing at the phoenix. "Suzaku."

The blond blinked once, twice, before his mouth curved into the faintest of smiles and he shook his head, leading Atche to raise his eyebrow. That was his name; he'd heard it himself! _"Do you know what that title is?" _He seemed to wait for a response. _"Of course not yoi. But I don't want you to use it. _Marco," he said slowly, pointing to himself.

The boy swallowed, heart racing as he readied himself to repeat, "Marco."

That smile widened, just a bit. _"That's right."_

Luhfi beamed, tugging on the blond's hand to get his attention and when he had it he laughed. "Marco!"

_"You're getting it. _Marco."

He wouldn't admit it, but Atche was relieved. That man hadn't garnered their trust, but he felt more… human.

* * *

Marco sighed as he read, feeling a light press against his arm. After feeding them a variety of things Thatch had left—in moderation and spanning over hours, as he'd been warned the day before that they wouldn't be able to hold down too much at a time—he wasn't sure what to do with them. The small one, Luffy, had tugged on his robes until he sat on the floor with them, which of course for legs like his wasn't exactly comfortable but he managed to lower himself without the boys seeing through the layered regalia to his non-humanlike feet. Luffy seemed to… not _trust_ him, but was interested all the same, which was good; he'd been worried the nestlings wouldn't go near him after what Ligi did, especially with how terrified they looked when he transformed. He wouldn't forget the looks on their faces, knowing that they'd probably react the same way if they ever saw him like that again.

Earlier the humans had gathered in their nest to start rebuilding the den that collapsed when Atche—no, wait, he was supposed to call him Ace, wasn't he? He'd picked up on their real names quickly and, in his opinion, they weren't that difficult. But maybe that was a good chance for them to move on. If they were scared of mythos and held a bad past with humans, maybe that could be a fresh start for them—so when _Ace_ got up, the den they'd built collapsed. Both boys went about rebuilding it, making it even bigger than before, until it was finally complete and Luffy got bored, crawling to the bird's side to see what he was reading. He couldn't read the words of course—most humans couldn't read their own language, let alone the language of the mythos—but still seemed to try as he peeked around Marco's shoulder. Ace remained in their nest, glancing over periodically as he perfected their den.

Moments ago Luffy started leaning against him. He glanced down at the boy, noting his drooping eyes as he yawned. Ace wasn't doing any better, really, his lids slipping closed every now and again as he swayed. It made sense they were so tired; they would need the rest if they were expected to heal. So, closing his book and dropping it to the floor, he turned to the little one and hesitantly scooped him into his arms. The action was forced, his dislike of humans pushing its way into his muscles despite everything that happened, but he did his best to ignore it as he walked across the room with the human against his chest.

Ace, half asleep as he was, growled at his approach, glaring when he saw his brother bundled tightly in the other's arms. Marco, for the most part, ignored the groggy threats from the boy who wasn't even tall enough to reach his waist and placed the younger carefully within the den of cushions and blankets before giving the elder his undivided attention. For the most part, Ace was the more cautious of the two, and the least trusting. Perhaps age had something to do with it—how old were they?—but the phoenix couldn't go near him without some sort of feral sound passing his lips. The only exception had been earlier when he was looking at Luffy's neck, seeing damaged skin that he knew would never heal. The areas where the collars repeatedly dug into their flesh looked like they had been opened every time that mutt had tugged on their chains, keeping them from healing. They would scar. They would scar and the boys would forever have those marks on their necks, reminding them of what they went through. It was only a week, but that was all that was needed.

The nestling looked far too tired to really care so Marco stepped forward. Ace's body went rigid but he never backed away, even as the phoenix knelt down in front of him.

"Hatchlings like you need their rest yoi. Get to sleep."

It looked like Ace wanted to protest as the blond reached out but he couldn't hold on for long, falling to lean against Marco's arm. He lifted the boy carefully and stuck him beside his kin, covering them in a blanket that was quickly kicked off. Both had their eyes open still, just barely, too tired to move. He knew it wouldn't be long and sighed, gathering some of the pillows that had fallen onto the floor during the construction of their den.

His eyes caught on a blanket shoved behind their nest and he blinked, reaching for it curiously. Nostalgia washed over him as he gripped the soft, smooth fabric of the old cloth, the corners of his mouth curving upward as he looked at it. A scent wafted his nose—Ace's scent. Had the boy hidden it there? Shrugging it off, he straightened and placed it over the humans' legs. Instantly they latched onto it, bunching it in their arms to snuggle nearer, their muscles relaxing. Luffy seemed to fall asleep soon after but Ace was still holding on, looking like he wasn't all there as his eyes forced themselves not to fully close.

"It's soft, isn't it?" he questioned, not particularly expecting a reply as he smoothed out their covering and tucked them in. "That was mine as a hatchling. My father gave it to me during my last rebirth yoi."

Why was he telling them about that? But soon grey met blue and he was staring into the eldest child's eyes, watching as he nestled closer to the other.

"I hope it's warm enough for you."

And slowly those eyes slid shut, light snores filling the room.

_Goodnight._

* * *

Atche woke to the touch of the softest blanket he'd ever felt. Snuggling closer he yawned, stretched and opened his eyes, peering blearily into the room. Lu was next to him, having stolen the blanket that they were using as a roof to cover himself with. Looking out at the window, night was arriving fast, the last tendrils of pink and orange vanishing from the midnight sky.

The boy sat up, wincing as the aches and pains from his injuries washed over his body. The only light in the room came from a few candles and lamps, leaving it just bright enough for them to be comfortable with. Then he noticed something: there was no one there. Thatch was gone and so was the bird, leaving them alone. The lack of company brought a rise of unease to swell in the pit of his stomach and he hopped to his feet, heading for the door.

He was surprised to see that the slab of wood was unlocked as he opened it, peering hesitantly into the connecting room. Immediately his eyes fell on the two monsters from before as they sat across from one another at a table, neither seeming to notice him.

_"Look: you want the cubs to understand you, right? Then you're going to have to do a little better than that."_

The blond groaned, dropping his head into his palms. _"Human languages are tedious yoi. Why can't they learn ours?"_

_"You plan on keeping them, right?"_

_"…Right."_

_"Then they'll pick it up eventually, but until then you need to be able to understand the important stuff. Try again."_

Suzaku—no, wait, it was Marco, wasn't it?—heaved a sigh. "Hungry _yoi_."

Atche's ears perked up. He understood that—or at least the first part. That was _his_ language. So then Marco and Thatch were…

_"Good, you got it that time."_

_"It's only one word yoi."_

_"Marco. Brother. It's important. If you know when they're hungry then it'll help out a lot when I'm not around."_

_"Taking seven hour naps."_

_"Hush. I need my beauty sleep. Now let's try 'yes'. _Yes."

"Yes."

_"See, you're getting it. No. _No."

"No."

_"You better be taking notes, bird."_

_"Yes, cat."_

Atche blinked, listening as they went back and forth with words that were basic to say the least, but they were words he _understood. _Beneath the phoenix's annoyance he could see a layer of deep concentration and as he stood there and watched the exchange he felt the corners of his mouth twist into an involuntary smile.

He took an absent step, alerting the two to his presence. Both sets of eyes turned to him and he flinched, but didn't move. They exchanged a look before the blond fully turned to him, leaning forward a bit. "Hungry _yoi_?"

The boy swallowed, taking one more step, supressing his excitement as he nodded. "Yes, hungry."

Thatch laughed as he rose from the chair. _"Alright, I'll fix you up a midnight snack."_

Being understood… felt _great._

* * *

**Before anyone asks: Yes, Marco ate Ligi. We'll touch on it more in the future but for now all you need to know is that it's a mythos custom and will be mentioned later. Just remember it. Also, HOLY REVIEWS. I don't know where you all come from but we're grateful! Thanks so much for the support and we hope to see you around more in the future! **

**To our lovelies~**

**Blue Wolf Miko: (B) It will get less sad…. (A) It'll get better! Don't worry, be happy~**

**Ireadtomuch: (B) HA! You thought you could fool us, when combined we have the power to break down the hardest of exteriors… No really, to keep up the illusion, read in private from now on. (A) Lol yeah, just read at home XD**

**damichan: (B) Thanks! Define 'catching a break'? (A) Yeah, because… things… will happen…**

**Son Goshen: (B) Ligi...Ligi is something I have to own up to. We wanted to create a character people could hate cleanly without coming into this with preconceived notions like if we had used someone from One Piece. We HAD thought about Breed or Dalmatian, but then you'd just hate him on principle right away not for what he did. So he's an OC. (A) I SAID NOTHING MESSED UP INTENDED GEEZ.**

**ThiefofStealth: (B)Yeah, chapter 2 is a real knife in the heart at parts. Thank you! (A) Glad you like~**

**Molly Grace 16: (B) I hope we can keep your interest! (A) What she said!**

**Shirani-Chan: (B)We love long reviews! Let me just say that first. Secondly, thanks for deciding to read the story, and LIKING IT! Anjelle will tell you that the language barrier isn't hard to write at all but sometimes I find it hard. The names, oh man….she came up with Atche and I came up with Luhfi, but there was a lot of going back and forth. (A) Long reviews are great! I don't find the language barrier hard. Maybe that's just me. Yeah, the names were tough. I've fallen in love with them though XD**

**xXMissAmeXx: (B) HA! Someone else who's a mythology nerd appreciates my work! I'm the one who usually looks up the mythos, but we both think up the roles or what the particular character needs to be able to do. So, joint effort, really. I feel kind of evil saying 'it makes my day to hear you say that' about the emotions, but it does, you know? (A) I'll stay out of this since I'm not a big mythology buff XD And yes, we're happy people reacted as we hoped :)**

**dragonfire1237: (B) Thank you! (A) We will!**

**caring16: (B) Honestly finding time we both can write together is sometimes harder than others, but the writing part isn't that hard. It's fun. (A) It's a LOT of fun XD**

**sairakanzaki: (B) I predict more tears. Thanks for the love! (A) Lots more tears. We warned you. But we'll give you a break for now.**

**shinXlullaby: (B) All this praise is going to make me blush. (A) You flatter us~**

**Aerle: (B) I keep telling her that, but she doesn't listen to me! I'll leave the rest to Anjelle. (A) If I'm not worried about this story I'm worrying about my others, sooo… :P I WILL WORRY. To be honest, we didn't really intend for you guys to know about what Izo was yet. Though Bedlam put it down, I only intended for 'Genbu' to be a hint. But, well, we needed to put it in the notes, so… You'll find out at a later date~ We has plans XD**

**Rheassa: (B) Total case of- nah, we're already working on 5 and 6. (A) We're ½ through 4 XD**

**Guest: (B) Thank you! (A) Here you go!**

**key46812: (B) Ligi gets no love, why is that? Thanks! Anjelle goes back after we write it all out and tightens it up, so I think the more we go on the harder it will be to tell as we get used to each other's style and with her excellent editing skills. We're going to get into where the mythos live in more detail, but for now, another realm. (A) Blame her for Ligi. Beddy, stahp, you're making me blush XD**

**alynawatlovers: (B) For plot! We didn't want to! (A) Because reasons! And it's Beddy's fault!**

**WeevilOne: (B) Admit it, if you met them, you'd like Luhfi and Atche. And no dog for you until you move, young lady! (A) Dogs DO need homes...**

**silent canary: (B)Have I mentioned I love your long thought out reviews? Because I do. Chapter 2 was one of those chapters that was hard to write because I had never had to write that kind of abuse and torment to young children who didn't understand before...hitting the right notes was tough. You seem to be one of the few people who noticed that Ligi's actions were completely normal for a mythos, too. Even if you hate him for it…. Gah, your review is just too amazing for words. (A) Sorry, I'm retyping my replies so I'm keeping this short T_T But thanks so much for the awesome review. Sadly I think you're the only person who realized that what Ligi did is perfectly normal in their society. The only ones who had a problem with it were Marco and Thatch.**

**hantoMNiGHT321: (B) Thank you very much! And again with the hating on Ligi. We did a good job on him…. (A) Blame her. I had nothing to do with him. Well, they'll at least try to get their trust. We'll see how it goes, though.**

**WhoaD: (B) WOOT you read Burning Rubber, too! Wait, hold on...back to this one. Thank you very much for the praise! We have lots of plans! (A) Stop rubbing in that they're from your fanbase :P Thanks! And yes, we have a lot of plans and all of your questions will be answered! Eventually.**

**onegirl92: (B) It'll get better… (A) Eventually.**

**Blueh: (B) That's all her fault. Just saying. We have plans for Izo. *grins* (A) Oi, YOU'RE the one who first suggested it. I just changed it and wrote it. Oh yes, Izo will be a LOT of fun muahaha.**

**MarzBarz: (B) I think it says something about fanfiction writers/readers that we love it when our hearts break a little. Marco really messed up, huh? But at least he's trying! Gotta love Thatch. (A) I think it's because we want to see things get better. And if they don't get better, it leaves an impact. So we're drawn to them.**

**Bard of Chaos: (B)At least I warned you! I agree, fanfiction makes us all a bit warped. (A) Fanfiction brings out the worst in us XD**

**TheAnalei: (B) Again, Ligi is an OC. We wanted you to come into this hating him for what he did, not for preconceived notions based off the One Piece character. Long reviews are great, we like those. The boys are cute, aren't they? And don't worry, Marco and Thatch are determined to help them! Even if they don't understand most of what they're saying at all. (A) Ligi has been eaten. Fear not. The boys are adorable. And they're going to recover. Hopefully.**

**Justa Little Puppy: (B) I refute any blame for you not doing your chores last time or this time before church. Ligi is a Black Dog, though, so it's ok! You can still like dogs! I do! (I feel like we made someone hated as much as Blackbeard…) (A) Lol I think we caused an identity crisis XD**

**Aille: (B) You'll have to wait and see for Whitebeard. Ligi seemed to have that effect on a lot of our readers for some reason. Can't imagine why… (A) Love the sarcasm XD**

**Nugni: (B) We don't already have a fangirl? I'm saddened by this. Social lives are overrated by the way. I will wisely keep my mouth shut on everything because Anj will kill me. (A) I will. She always reveals too much if I don't keep an eye on her. For now I'll just say wait and see :P**

**cirmos98: (B) If we were, we wouldn't tell you. XD Yeah we didn't notice at first how long it was until it got close to posting time. Then it was like WTF?! (A) It was a surprise to see how giant it was XD**

**Suki Miko: (B)Ah fangirling. I do that at work. My coworkers have given up on me I think. It's going to be a long road for Thatch and Marco. Honestly, writing this story has made me love those two more. (A) Zoro and Kuina were mentioned but for now they'll remain characters that may or may not appear later in the story :P**

**Nimphy-Ryuu-chan: (B) I think deep down we all like our characters to suffer a bit. (A) Truer words have never been spoken.**

**Frostheart D. Blaize: (B)Oyaji was listed. He's a Bochica. And as for the four symbols, you'll just have to wait and see….? (A) They ARE part of the symbols, but I can't say there'll be an azure dragon, sorry XD**

**Suki Miko: (B) I love 100days! There needs to be more good Thatch stories out there. Thatch is awesome. (A) Thatch needs more love. 'Tis true. And I also love that fic XD**

**samettikettu: (B) Success! We made you feel for humans! Thatch is awesome, isn't he? He and Marco are a great pair. Ok, That scene, that was all your Husbando. I had nothing to do with it. (A) Oi, again with blaming me. You first mentioned the neck snapping! I'll admit the cannibalism among mythos was all me, though.**

**uchiha-sakura193: (B) It's necessary for plot! (A) What she said.**

**Sully-van: (B) Stunned is good, right? This chapter was supposed to be an emotional sucker-punch, and I think it worked. (A) Yes, stunned is good.**

**Fruitstogether: (B) Nope, it wasn't from the hunger games. (A) As far as I can remember, there are no species in this fic so far that become something else when they age.**

**Thanks so much for the favs, follows, and reviews! We hope you enjoyed!**

**Adieu~**

***quote by Dante Alighieri**


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